


Not Quite Singing in Perfect Harmony

by IprotectKennyP (dauntperplexity)



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Angst, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Hopeful Ending, Las Vegas Aces, M/M, Miscommunication, Misunderstandings, Multi, POV Multiple
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-30
Updated: 2017-06-30
Packaged: 2018-11-20 23:57:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 27,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11345808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dauntperplexity/pseuds/IprotectKennyP
Summary: Bitty held up his phone with one hand and rubbed his eye with the other. “Kent Parson is engaged?”“Kent’s engaged,” Jack said. He wasn’t sure how he felt about it. Happy for him? Surprised? Something else?Bitty looked over at Jack and sighed. “Invite him to dinner,” he said.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cambo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cambo/gifts).



> After a three false starts, I finally came up with something. I hope this fulfills everything you were asking for. And I hope you enjoy.
> 
> To zombi and Katai. Thanks for being the most encouraging and best cheerleaders ever.
> 
> This fic may be the start of a whole universe starring these three.

Jack was twenty pages deep in his binder of Falconers plays when he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He smiled when he saw how messy Bitty’s bed head was this morning. “Morning,” he said. “What are you doing up?” He looked at his watch and saw how early it was for Bitty to be awake.

Bitty held up his phone with one hand and rubbed his eye with the other. “Kent Parson is engaged?”

Although most of Jack’s attention was on the binder in his lap and the little tuft of hair sticking up on Bitty’s head, his brain stopped at the mention of Kent. And Kent being engaged. “What are you talking about?” he asked.

“Holster just linked it in the group chat,” Bitty said, walking over and sitting next to Jack on the couch. He leaned into Jack's side as he unlocked his phone and held it out to Jack. “Here.”

Jack took the phone and zoomed in on it so he could read. He didn’t have to do much to see the title. 

   


**KENT PARSON ENGAGED?**

By Kaplan O'Donnell  
Sunday, 7 May 2017

Kent Parson, captain of the Las Vegas Aces, was seen last night at a bar with his teammates celebrating a huge game 5 win against the Seattle Schooners. Although that is not out of the ordinary for one of the top players in the league, the ring around his finger was a new addition. Parson has been linked to—

  


Jack scrolled to tap on the picture so he could zoom in on it. Kent looked happy. He was smiling with a drink in his hand. The same hand that was the center of the picture. The fruity concoction would’ve been a focus had it not been for the ring on Kent’s finger.

Plain.

Gold.

And he wasn’t trying to hide it.

Jack closed the browser and handed the phone to Bitty. “Kent’s engaged,” he said. He wasn’t sure how he felt about it. Happy for him? Surprised? Something else?

“Are you okay?” Bitty asked him.

Jack looked over at Bitty who looked like he needed a few more hours of sleep to be able to have this conversation. “Yeah, of course,” he said. He leaned over and kissed Bitty on the top of his head. “Go back to bed,” he said. "I have a few more plays I have to look at, then I’ll wake you up for breakfast.”

Bitty sat up and looked at Jack like he was trying to read the expression on his face. He nodded kissed him on his lips. "I love you,” he said. He picked up his phone as he stood up and typed a message or two before heading back into the bedroom to sleep. 

Jack wanted to go back to reading plays, but he couldn’t. He stared at same page for five minutes before pulling out his own phone. He read through the group chat messages. Half of them were surprised at Kent being engaged. The other half was wonder who the hell was Kent engaged to.

He should have put his phone down.

Instead, he scrolled through his contacts and lingered on a name he hadn’t lingered over through three phone upgrades.

He dialed Kent’s numbed, held the phone to his ear, and waited. It was a few rings before he heard a groan on the other line.

“Congratulations,” Jack said. Then he waited for the response. He had to look at his phone to see if the call had ben disconnected. 

Kent was still on the line.

“Jack?”

"I just wanted to call and tell you congratulations.” That made sense, right?

“For what?” Kent said. He rolled over in his bed. “Fuck,” he said as he kicked off his blankets.

“You’re engaged?”

“I’m not listening,” Kent said. “What time is it?”

Jack pulled his phone away from his ear again. “It’s 8:15.”

“Which means it’s five,” Kent said, rubbing his eyes. “Call back later.”

“Oh.” Jack’s eyes went wide. He forgot about the time difference. “I’ll call you at noon.”

“Noon my time,” Kent amended. 

“So, three here.”

“Respect the time difference, Zimms. Shit.” Kent hung up the phone in the middle of a sigh. 

Jack stared at his phone until Kent’s name disappeared from the screen. He shut the binder in his lap and stood up. He headed to his room where Bitty sat on his side of the bed, scrolling through his phone again. "I thought you were going back to sleep?”

“It’s a busy news day,” Bitty said. He set his phone in his lap and looked over at Jack. “So?”

“It’s five in the morning in Las Vegas,” Jack said, climbing into bed with him. “He could’ve been in bed with his fiancé.”

“You called him?”

“To say congratulations,” Jack said.

"I see.”

“That’s proper thing to do, right? Someone gets engaged, you congratulated them.”

"I mean, yes. To your friends.”

“Kent and I are friends.” Bitty gave Jack a look that told Jack everything. “Even if we aren’t as good friends as we used to be, I still need to congratulate him.”

Bitty let out a sigh that was equally “no” as much as “but it was completely a Jack thing to do”. “You could’ve sent a text,” he replied

Jack paused for a moment. He could’ve done that. Why didn’t he do that? It just felt important to call Kent instead. "I didn’t do the right thing, did I?” He sighed, staring at his lap.

“You said you’d call him later, didn’t you?”

“I’ll text him,” Jack said. That was better. He wouldn’t have to carry a conversation with Kent. Eric wouldn’t be upset. All he’d have to do was send a text or two. Then he could go back to only seeing him on the ice a few times a year.

“Do what you think is best, Jack.” Bitty paused to look at Jack, knowing exactly the choice he was going to make. “Just… be careful.”

Jack nodded. "I will.”

Bitty put his phone down and moved to lie down. He was finally tired enough to fall back to sleep.

But Jack couldn’t.

Even though Jack would never admit it, he was counting down the hours to when he said he was supposed to talk to Kent. He had made breakfast for him and Eric and Eric had made lunch for them before heading out to do some shopping. That left Jack alone in the house.

He sat on the couch, staring at his phone, watching the time. 

As soon as the clock changed to 3:00, he opened up his contacts and went to Kent’s name again. He dialed the number and held the phone to his ear. The phone rang more times than it did when he called earlier. He was about to cancel the call when Kent finally picked up.

There was silence on the line.

“Hello?” Kent said slowly after a minute or two.

“Kent.”

“Jack?” He actually sounded awake now.

“Hey,” he said. "I just called to say congratulations. Again.” Even though Kent didn't hear it last time.

“Congratulations for what?” Kent asked. He opened and shut the fridge to grab something to eat. “Did I win some sort of award?”

“You’re engaged,” Jack said.

“I’m what now?” Kent replied.

“Engaged?”

Kent frowned and looked at his phone to make sure that it was still on. And that it was working properly. “Did… what happened?”

“You got engaged?” The more Jack said it, the more it seemed like this was not the case.

“Jack. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

So Kent wasn’t engaged. Or he was playing some sort of weird prank on him. “Don’t you google yourself?”

“No, I do not google myself. Give me one second.” Kent walked over to his laptop and googled himself. He laughed at the first headline.  


 

**KENT PARSON FINALLY SETTLES DOWN**

   
 

“Oh,” Kent said after a short laugh. “Huh. I should google myself more often. Apparently I’m engaged.”

“Yeah,” Jack said softly. “So. Are you?”

“Oh my god,” Kent said, starting to laugh. “It’s fake. Holy shit.” He pulled his phone away from his ear and saw just how many messages he had before putting his phone back to his ear. “Holy shit. That’s… oh man.” He was in a little bit of trouble.

“So, you’re not engaged,” Jack said. He needed some clarification.

“No. I’m not. I was just wearing Baldo’s ring,” Kent said. He looked at his left hand and his naked ring finger. He had worn that for ring for a few hours.

“Baldo?”

“Baldoni,” Kent said. He took in a deep breath to prepare for the lengthy explanation. ”I was wearing his ring. We were all out and he said something about me always getting hit on. And he was all broody because he wasn’t getting hit on. And I said it was because the ring on his finger made him invisible. So, he gave me his ring because he thought that it would make me less likely to get hit on. And we could drink in peace.”

“Did it work?” Jack asked. 

"I was still hit on. Can you believe that?” Kent said, appalled. 

“What?” Jack asked. 

“Like I would cheat on my husband.”

“Kent. You’re not married. You’re not even engaged.”

“Yeah. So,” Kent said. “Why do you care?”

Jack stayed quiet for a few seconds. Why did he care? “I… I don’t,” Jack said softly. It felt wrong to say. In any context. 

“Yeah. Okay,” Kent said softly. “Well, now that you know the truth, thanks for calling.” He hung up the phone without saying anything else. 

Jack stared at his phone again. He was just hung up on. He sighed, knowing he deserved it, though. Didn’t he? Calling out of nowhere and trying to pick up like there wasn’t eight years of distance between them.

He should’ve just let it go. He had the answer he wanted. Kent was not engaged.

All he had to do was put his phone away and not think about Kent Parson.

 

 **Jack:**  
Baldo isn’t bald.

 **Kent:**  
No he is not.

 **Kent:**  
His hair is fantastic. He has the best hair on the team.

 **Jack:**  
Maybe even in the league.

 **Kent:**  
That too.

 **Jack:**  
Hockey nicknames sometimes.

 **Jack:**  
So. How have you been?

 

Jack waited a few minutes for the reply. He was ready to text back when he didn’t get one. But then Kent’s name flashed on the screen.

“We’re not doing this,” Kent said. “We’re not doing this, and we’re definitely not doing this through text.”

“What are you talking about?” Jack asked.

Kent let out an exaggerated sigh. “Is the engagement really why you called?”

"I thought you were engaged, Kent.”

“Why?”

"I saw the article.” 

“No. I mean, why do you care? Don’t answer that. I mean, you already did.” Kent paused for a moment to think of what he wanted to say next. “We haven’t talked for like a decade. This is the most civil conversation we’ve had since the Q and it’s because you thought I was engaged.”

“Kenny,” Jack slipped out. He didn’t mean to call him that.

“No,” Kent said quickly. “It’s fine. It’s fine,” he added, hoping it was a smooth recovery. “It’s just… fine.”

“So you’ve said.” Three times, in fact.

“Look, Zimms. Get back to your boy, okay?”

Jack’s eyes went wide. There was no way he could have known that he had a boyfriend. The only people who knew were his teammates. And his family. “Kent, I’m not—”

“Right," Kent politely interrupted. “And I’m engaged to the love of my life.”

“Kenny.”

“Jack,” Kent said, his voice almost pleading. “We’re… we aren’t friends.”

That was the second person today questioning if he was really friends with Kent. “We’re not?”

“You treat all your friends the way you treat me?” Kent challenged. After a minute of silence he let out a soft laugh. “That’s what I thought.”

Jack felt his heart rate pick up. He had never really thought about his relationship with Kent past the Q. Mostly because he had cut him off. It was for good reason. But he did cut him off. Without explanation.

He didn’t do that to anyone else in the Q. Then again, he didn’t make out with anyone from the Q like he did with Kent, either. Their relationship was different and complicated. But, to answer Kent’s question, he did not treat his friends, from the Q or from Samwell, the way he treated Kent.

"I need to apologize,” Jack said because of the revelation. For a lot of things. He told Eric years ago that he owed Kent that. It seemed the right time to make it happen.

“Yeah. Well, don’t do that today,” Kent said after a moment of silence.

Or maybe it wasn’t the right time. “Why not?”

"I don’t think I’ll accept it if you do it today.” Kent knew that sounded selfish, and it sort of was. “And I don’t think I’m ready to apologize to you.”

“Okay,” Jack said. He could wait. Kent waited long enough, Jack would wait a little longer.

“Okay,” Kent said.

“How about the next time we see each other?” Jack suggested. “We’ll meet up. And we can talk?”

“We play each other in November,” Kent said. He knew Jack’s schedule. Ever since Jack joined the league, he always noted whenever the Aces played the Falconers.

Rivalry.

“That’s… a long time,” Jack said. 

“Yeah. It’s fine. It’ll give me time.”

“Time to what?” Jack asked. Regardless of the reason, if Kent needed more time, then Jack was going to give it to him. No matter what it was for.

“To actually make out my list,” Kent replied.

“Of what?” Jack asked slowly. He felt like he was asking a lot of questions.

“All the things I have to apologize to you for.”

“Kent, there isn’t—”

“There is, Jack,” Kent said. "I haven’t done right by you for…” There was a moment of silence as if Kent was trying to figure out exactly when he started doing Jack wrong. "I just have a lot to apologize for.”

“Yeah,” Jack said. “Me too.” Well, for the first time in years, he and Kent were on the same page. “July.”

“What about it?”

“Maybe we can me up in July? Sometime between our birthdays. After playoffs and the draft and when we’re all settled down.”

“And what?” Kent said. “Have a combined birthday party?”

"I can apologize to you. Do you think you’ll be able to accept my apology by then?” Jack asked. He knew there was no way Kent could know how he’d be in a few months. If Kent wasn’t, that’d be okay.

“Maybe,” Kent said. 

Jack could understand that. There were days that he still felt like he couldn’t accept an apology from Kent. Or even give one. “Even if you’re not ready to apologize to me, I want to still want to talk to you. If that’s okay.”

“I’ll let you know,” Kent said.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Kent said with a sigh. “Or, you could just tell me when you want me there and I’ll make it happen. Your terms.”

“You could always tell me when you’re comfortable.”

“Then I’d never tell you anything,” Kent said. He’d made so many efforts before and they’d all been rejected. He could only take so many rejections before just giving up completely.

“Okay,” Jack said. He lifted his phone away from his ear and scrolled through the calendar. “July 20th,” he said after putting his phone back to his ear. “Do you think you could fly up on that day?”

“Why that day?”

“It’s exactly halfway between our birthdays,” Jack said. 

Kent laughed. “Of course it is. July 20th. I’ll see you then.”

“Really?”

“I’ll make a flight as soon as we hang up.” He sighed softly. “Okay. Now I gotta do some damage control because apparently the world thinks I’m engaged.”

“Good luck,” Jack said.

“Thanks,” Kent said. “I’m gonna say bye now because it’s rude to hang up on you twice in a day.”

If Kent did, it would’ve been the third time, but Jack wasn’t going to say anything. “Bye, Kent. And give the Schooners hell.”

Jack hung up first and set his phone down. He leaned back and let out a sigh. He just had a civil conversation with Kent.

And, now, Kent was coming up to visit.

Now, all he had to do was tell Bitty that they were expecting a guest.

Bitty walked into the house an hour later with groceries in his arms. “Kent’s not engaged,” he said.

“How do you know?” Jack asked.

Bitty put his bags down and pulled his phone out. “He posted something on Instagram.” He opened it up and scrolled to a picture of two cats. “Read the caption.”

 

 **kentstopwonttop** News of my engagement have been greatly exaggerated. These monsters are the only ones for me. Might have to add another one to the mix. #lvaces #kentparsonjr #katpawson #parsonsingleaf

 

“That sounds like him,” Jack said, handing back Bitty’s phone. 

“You don’t sound surprised,” Bitty said, liking the picture.

“He told me,” Jack said. “When I called him.” He watched Bitty for his reaction.

Bitty let out a short laugh. “Of course.” He went to grab his bags so he could put what he bought away. “Of course he’d have a scandal like this, and try to fix it with a tweet or picture.”

“Right,” Jack said. He watched Bitty head toward the hall. “Um. He’s coming over to visit in July.”

Bitty looked back at Jack. “Why?” he asked. 

“I… invited him,” Jack said softly. "I figured it was time for us to… catch up?”

Bitty raised his eyebrow at him. “Really? Are you sure he didn’t invite himself over?”

“No,” Jack said. "I invited him. He’ll be here July 20th.”

“And one day is enough for you two to apologize to each other?” Bitty asked. 

Jack shook his head. "I think… we’ll finally start to apologize to each other,” he said. “It’s been years since I told you that’s what we needed to do.”

“And you thought that now is the time for that to happen?”

“We’ve… already wasted almost a decade,” he said. "I think it’s time. Even if we aren’t friends by the end of this, then at least we don’t have any of this baggage between us.”

"I guess,” Bitty said. “I’m going to put these away, then we can get started on dinner. And, no more talk about Kent Parson tonight.”

“Okay,” Jack said. “Do you need help?”

Bitty shook his head at Jack. “Get some water boiling. And pull the chicken out of the fridge.” He then disappeared down the hallway.

Like Bitty had said, there was no talk of Kent Parson for the rest of the night.

That wasn’t the case for the weeks between Kent’s non-engagement and the day that Kent was supposed to visit. 

Jack and Bitty watched as the Aces were knocked out of the playoffs by the Schooners in a double overtime game. Kent played a beautiful game.

And Jack was sure to text him that as soon as he could. It took Kent two days to respond, which didn’t really upset Jack. Mostly because he understood how it felt to lose in the playoffs. And because they weren’t close enough of friends that Kent would have to respond immediately.

Jack texted Kent every now and then, mostly to make sure that Kent was still coming to visit. 

Kent’s replies were usually only a few words long, but he always said that he’d be there. 

Eric, for the most part, stayed out of it. He didn’t say anything every time he saw Jack texting Kent. He wasn’t going to get involved. This was between Jack and Kent and it would stay between Jack and Kent.

The day that Kent was supposed to visit, Eric made himself scarce.

Jack was busy cleaning his already pristine apartment when there was a knock on the door. He walked over and opened it and saw Kent standing in a hallway with a gift bag in his hands. “Kent,” he said.

“Hi.” Kent held the bag out to him. "I bought um… these little things that this shop in Vegas is known for.”

Jack took the bag. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“Yeah. Well. It was either this or shot glasses,” Kent said with a shrug. "I couldn’t just show up to your place for the first time empty handed, now could I?”

“You could’ve,” Jack said.

“My mom raised me better.” He stuck his head into Jack’s apartment to look around. “Your boy home?”

“No. He had things to do. Probably went to buy some groceries. He has things to bake in the next few days.”

Kent nodded, looking almost relieved. “Okay. So, let’s get this over with then.”

Jack nodded to agree. Honestly, he was just glad Kent was there, because he was sure that Kent was going to not show up at the last minute. “Do you want to come inside?” He was trying to be polite, but he would’ve rather had this conversation with Kent in his apartment and not standing out in the hallway.

“This gonna take long?”

“It could,” Jack said. He really didn’t want Kent to just apologize and leave. He wanted to be able to talk to Kent for longer than five minutes. "I might have a list too. Do you have somewhere to be?” he asked. He tried not to make his voice sound as hopeful as he felt.

“Not really,” Kent said, stepping into the apartment.

Jack took it as a good sign. He shut the door behind Kent. “Come on,” he said, leading him to the living room. “There’s cupcakes.” It wasn’t that Bitty made cupcakes for them, it was leftover from an event he worked.

“Trying to fatten me up before my slaughter?” he asked.

“What?” Jack asked as he went to the kitchen and grabbed a plate of cupcakes. “That’s not something that happens, Kent. There’s no ulterior motive. Just cupcakes.”

Kent looked at the tray set down in front of him. “You eat cake?” he asked.

"I have it too,” he said. “Come on.” He picked one up and offered it to him. “They’re good. They won’t ruin your diet too badly.”

“It’s the offseason.” He took the cupcake, but didn’t take a bite. "I could be allergic.”

“You aren’t allergic to anything,” Jack said, rolling his eyes.

“You don’t know that,” Kent said. "I could be.”

“You’re not.” Jack looked at the cupcake still in his hand. “You don’t have to eat it.”

“No. That would be rude,” Kent said. He pulled off the wrapper and pulled apart the cake before putting one half on top of the frosting, sandwiching it. He then took a bite. If he was eating, he didn’t have to talk.

Jack smiled when Kent finally took a bite. “How is it?” he asked.

Kent just gave Jack a thumbs up. It was good. He realized that it would be easiest to keep eating cupcakes so he didn’t actually have to say anything to Jack.

Jack picked up a cupcake and took a bite so he wasn’t just watching Kent eat. He finished before Kent did and saw Kent finish his cupcake also. “How’s the offseason treating you?”

“Sleeping. Eating. Sleeping. Catching up with my book club.”

“Book club?”

“No. No book club. Just recharging before everything picks up again, you know?”

“We have until October.”

“Yeah, but you don’t have to gain back the twenty pounds you lose during the season to lose them all over again.”

Jack frowned. “You need a nutritionist.”

"I have two.”

“Two?”

“Yeah. They really don’t like that I keep losing weight like this,” Kent said. He shrugged and picked up another cupcake. “But it’s been like that since I started in the league, you know?” Kent was about to take a bite of the cupcake when he realized what he just said. “Or… maybe you don’t? I don’t know. It’s… been a long time.”

“A couple of years,” Jack said.

“A lot of years,” Kent replied. He set the uneaten cupcake down and wiped his hands on his jeans. “Okay,” he said. “Time to get this over with, right?” He reached into his pocket and pulled out three sheets of paper.”

“That’s… a list?”

"I said I was going to make one,” Kent said. “Okay. Number one.”

“No, no,” Jack said, shaking his head. He reached out to take the papers from Kent’s hands. “Not… no. Don’t do it like that.”

“Don’t tell me what to do,” Kent said, pulling the papers away from him. "I need the list. There are some really important points on here.” He looked up at Jack. "I promise that it’ll be completely sincere even if I’m reading it from a piece of paper.”

“Kenny,” Jack said. He saw Kent tense. “Sorry.”

“No. I’m going first,” Kent said.

“You always do,” Jack said. Kent tensed again and Jack realized how differently those words could have been taken. 

“Um,” Kent said softly. “Number two. I’m sorry for going first after you dropped out of the draft.” 

“You are not apologizing for that,” Jack said.

“It’s number two on my list,” Kent replied. He turned the pages around and showed it to him. “See.”

Jack squinted so that he could read other things on the list. “You’re apologizing for scoring on the Falcs every game we’ve played against each other.”

Kent turned the pages back around and held him to his chest. “You get broody,” he said.

“And I’m sorry for that,” Jack said. "I don’t like losing.”

“To me, especially,” Kent said. “And maybe to Cros too.”

“Nobody likes losing to Crosby.”

“Agreed,” Kent said with a sigh. “Okay. Well. Since I skipped number one and went straight to two, we’re going back. Number one.”

“Kent.”

“I’m sorry for being shitty to you over these last few years.” He shook his head. “Already read number two. Number three. I’m sorry for trying to force my way back into your life when you didn’t want me in it. Number four—”

“Kent. How many items are on this list?”

Kent flipped to the last page. “Um. It says 114. But I'm pretty sure there are some repeats. Or some things I forgot.” He sighed, going back to the first page. “Number four.”

“Kent, stop,” Jack said. "I don’t want to do this.”

Kent bit his bottom lip. “Oh,” he said. He folded up the pages, ready to put them back into his pocket. "I just… next time then,” he said. “November? Or I could leave the list and you just read it.”

“No, no,” he said. "I mean, we can’t do this like this. This reading to each other.”

“I’m reading to you.”

“Still.”

“If I go off book, I’ll say something wrong.” Kent flipped to the second page. “Number 54. I’m sorry for saying shitty things to you at that party at your school.” He sighed and looked at Jack. “I had this whole speech to try and convince you to come to the Aces. Then we started kissing. And then you stopped. And my speech went out the window. So, yeah. Me going off book is bad. And I don’t want to say hurtful shit like that anymore. 

“You won’t,” Jack said. “Can I go first? Please?”

Kent sighed and his shoulders slumped. “Yeah,” he said. "I mean, you were supposed to do that anyway.” 

“Thank you.” He smiled at him. “You don’t have to apologize for things you couldn’t help,” he said. “Like getting drafted first.”

“It didn’t belong to me.”

“You didn’t know if I was gonna go first or not.”

“Jack.”

"I had all this pressure on me,” Jack said. "I know you wished you could’ve helped, but there was no way you could’ve done anything. It was all… I was sick.”

"I could’ve seen—”

"I didn’t want you to. It wasn’t your job to take care of me back then, even though you always acted like it.”

Kent let out a laugh. "I didn’t mind.”

“Well,” Jack said. "I can take care of myself now. And I’m better. So. I figured now’s the time for me to be able to talk to you and be mature about us.”

“What about us?”

“We have all this air to clear between us,” Jack said. "I mean, the way your leg is bouncing, I’m expecting you to just bolt out of here.”

“Just… getting ready, you know?”

“For what?”

“Anything. Always gotta be prepared. Once a boy scout, always a boy scout.”

“Kent,” Jack said. “Listen to me. The OD and everything that followed is not on you. It’s on me.”

“What about the me trying to be in your life when you kept saying no?”

“Okay. Maybe that was on you. But I shouldn’t have cut you out without telling you why I was cutting you out. I should’ve let you see me. Even if it wasn’t right after the whole thing, like… eventually.”

“You needed to get better.”

“It wasn’t easy.”

“The analysts and assholes didn’t help.”

“They wanted me to fail, Kent,” Jack said.

“And you didn’t,” Kent said. 

Jack looked at Kent incredulously. "I didn’t make it to the draft.”

“Is that the only way to succeed?” Kent asked. "I figured succeeding means breaking in, which you did. So, you won.”

“You have cups,” Jack countered.

“And you have a huge ass…” Kent took a bite of his second cupcake. He swallowed and smiled. “Support system.”

“Funny,” Jack said with a smile. 

“The way I see it, you made it,” Kent said. “You’re still playing the sport those fuckers tried so hard to take away from you. You don’t owe the league anything, Jack. Just play. And, if this season has proven anything, you can.”

“Kent,” Jack said softly. 

"I know, I know. Cheeky.” Kent shoved the rest of the cupcake into his mouth. It took him a minute before he swallowed it all down. He looked at his watch and saw that he had spent a lot more time there than he had planned. “I think we did good for today,” he said.

“Me too.”

“Okay. I’m gonna head out before your boy gets back,” he said. 

“You can stay,” Jack said. Kent had just got here, he couldn’t leave now.

“Nah,” Kent said. "I mean, I get a feeling he doesn't like me very much,” he said. 

“Why would you say that?”

"I just… he doesn’t.”

“He does.” 

Kent laughed. “Could’ve fooled me, bro,” he said. “He loves liking every tweet that just throws even the slightest shade toward me.”

“He doesn’t do that,” Jack said.

“You should check on his twitter.” He took his hat off and brushed his fingers through it. He stood up and sighed. “That being said, I’m gonna head out.”

“Stay for dinner,” Jack said. 

“I’m meeting Swoops somewhere for dinner.”

“He’s here too?”

“Yeah,” Kent said. “He’s here with his family. So. I should head out.”

“So you’ve said. Let me walk you out?”

“It’s like five feet.”

“Kenny.” Jack saw the look on Kent’s face. “Kent. Sorry. I just…”

“It’s fine, Jack,” he said. “Still call you Zimms in my head sometimes, you know?”

Jack couldn’t help but smirk and blush at that. “Come on,” he said. He stood up with Kent and put a hand on the small of his back to guide him toward the door. “You want any more cupcakes?”

Kent shook his head. “I’m good, man,” he said softly. He walked where Jack led him. He got to the door and stepped away from Jack’s hand. Kent stood near the entrance of Jack’s apartment, fiddling with his hat in his hands. “So. I guess—”

He was interrupted by the sound of the door opening. He stepped out of the way to make sure he wasn’t hit as the door flew open. He saw Bitty holding a few grocery bags and reached out to grab one to help before he stopped himself.

Jack moved instead, taking two of them from Bitty’s hands.

“Thank you, sweetie,” Bitty said. He looked over and realized that someone else was in the room with them. “What is he doing here?” he asked.

Kent blushed deeply and put his hat on. "I think that’s my cue to leave. It was nice to see you, Eric. I’ll see you on the ice, Z… Jack.” He nodded and walked out of the door.

Bitty and Jack watched as Kent left the apartment and shut the door behind him. “We should put these things away.” He led the way to the kitchen. He hummed as he started to unpack what he had bought.

Jack stood in the middle of the kitchen, taking his time putting away his groceries. They didn’t say anything to each other until the groceries were put away. “Bittle,” Jack said with a sigh.

Bitty looked up. He tilted his head and looked at Jack, trying to read the expression on his face. “Oh no,” he said softly. “You said Bittle and you have that look on your face. What happened?” He seemed ready to defend Jack if he needed to. He scrolled through people on Twitter, ready to send a direct message to a certain captain of the Las Vegas Aces.

“He just wanted to talk.”

“Oh,” Bitty said, closing out of Twitter. Maybe he was a bit too eager to jump the gun.

“He was right,” Jack said. “You don’t like him, do you?”

Bitty raised his eyebrow. "I don’t know him very well. But what I do know about him, I don’t like.”

“From the internet?” Jack said. He had googled Kent from time to time.

“From you,” Bitty said.

“What?”

“The way you talk about him. After he crashed the kegster, you said you owed each other apologies. I haven’t seen you make any and I haven't heard of you making any effort to talk to him since then. And then whenever the two of you play each other, it’s terrible.”

Jack stared at Bitty. “What are you talking about?”

“Kent makes stupid, reckless plays. He does anything he can to win a game without thinking about his own well being.”

“He’s always been—”

“And you,” Bitty said as if Jack hadn't’ said anything. “You always get mad when you lose. But it’s so much worse when you play against the Aces.”

"I don’t—”

“You brood for days,” Eric said. “I’ve documented it on my snaps multiple times.”

“That’s not true,” Jack said. It couldn’t be. Even if Kent and Bitty had said it was. He didn’t want it to be true. There was no way he was broody over loses to Kent.

“It’s true,” Eric countered. “And you’re not like this when you lose to other teams. It’s because of Kent. You don’t like him. And because we’re a team, I don’t like him either.”

“Bitty,” Jack said with another sigh. “He’s not that bad.”

“And how am I supposed to know that? You change the channel every time he comes up on ESPN. There was a rivalry between the Falcs and Aces before you joined the team. It’s multiplied by a hundred now that you’re on it. We can’t talk about him.”

“Do you want to talk about him?”

“If it’ll help you move on, then yes.”

“Move on?”

“Jack. There wasn’t any closure between the two of you.”

“There was nothing to close.”

Bitty dragged his hand down his face, frustrated. Then again, what could he expect? Jack hadn’t noticed that Bitty had feelings for him. He didn’t even realize the feelings that Kent had for him. And not to mention he didn’t recognize when he had feelings for Bitty. “Jack,” he said as patiently as he could. “I’ve seen the pictures at your house. I’ve heard the stories. You two… there was something. Even if you didn’t feel the same way he did.”

“That’s not—”

“He tells you Happy Birthday every year. Every year since the draft. And you ignore him every time.”

"I don’t know what to say to him,” Jack said. “And it makes me feel bad that I haven’t said it to him once in all those years.”

"I mean, it’s okay. He’s probably the third most important person on that day?”

“Third?”

“There’s America. And Captain America. And… I think one of Obama’s daughter’s. And probably more famous people. Then Kent Parson.”

Jack was tempted to look up who was born on that day, but he stopped himself. That was a task for a different day. "I told him Happy Birthday this year, didn’t I?”

"I don’t know, did you? I mean, you’ve been texting him for weeks. It’d be pretty weird if you didn’t at least mention it.”

Jack felt a feeling of dread come over him. He wasn’t actually sure if he did. Most of his texts were just to make sure he was coming to see him. "I don’t know,” he said. How did the conversation come to this with him feeling guilty over what he did or didn’t say. “Okay. Back to our original topic.”

“You mean about you and Kent’s relationship when you were back int he Q?”

“We were teammates,” Jack said. “That’s it.”

Bitty let out another groan. “Jack,” he said as gently as he could. “It’s okay if you loved him.”

"I didn’t,” Jack said with as much conviction as he could.

Bitty almost believed him. “Jack. You’re allowed to love more than one person in your lifetime.”

"I don’t love him. I don’t know if I ever did. I was… I was in such a different place back then.”

“Well, the Jack back then loved the Kent back then. Maybe. I think.”

Jack still wasn’t sure if he believed it or not. “I’m not sure,” he said. “I… it was so long ago. Do we have to talk about this?”

“No, honey,” Bitty said. “We don’t.” He looked at Jack and saw that there were a lot of things going on in Jack’s head. He walked up to him and kissed him on his cheek. “We don’t have to talk about Kent Parson anymore. You probably dealt with a lot with him here today.” 

“It wasn’t too bad,” he said softly. “He apologized. I apologized. There’s still a lot we have to work through, but it was a good start.” Jack saw Bitty turn to head into the kitchen. “Okay. No more talk about Kent.”

“Thank you, sweetie,” Bitty said. He looked back and saw Jack following him. He kissed him on his lips before going to grab things for dinner.

Jack smiled and moved around to help get started on dinner. “One thing.”

“What is it?” Bitty asked as he pulled out some vegetables and pork chops.

“If you didn’t want me talking to Kent, why did you tell me about his engagement?”

Bitty stopped himself from reaching for the knife. It was about a minute before he turned to look at Jack. "I didn’t want you got be caught off guard.”

“Bitty,” Jack said. “You don’t have to do things like that. I’m a big boy. I can take care of myself. But, thank you.”

"I know, sweetie. But I just want to make sure you’re okay. There’s a lot of history between the two of you,” Bitty said. “And not a lot of good as of recently.” 

"I know. But we’re working on that,” Jack said.

“You are?”

"I hope so.”

There was no more talk of Kent while the two of them put dinner together. Pork chops and vegetables. They ate dinner keeping topics mostly on Bitty and how his day went.

While they were cleaning up, Bitty looked over at Jack and sighed. “Invite him to dinner,” he said while Jack was drying his hands. 

Jack was surprised at the suggestion. He saw that Bitty really meant it. He wanted Kent over for dinner. “When?” he asked.

“When are you okay with him coming over?” He wasn’t sure if it would be good for Jack to have to deal with Kent so soon after him being over today.

“How much time do you need to plan a dinner?” Jack asked.

“We can go to a restaurant,” Bitty suggested.

“It’ll get interrupted,” he said. 

"I forget that you’re both famous,” Bitty said. And in a state as small as Rhode Island, people would definitely recognize Jack. And Kent. And Jack and Kent together.

“And you’d rather cook anyway,” Jack said. 

Jack was right. It would give Bitty a reason to be smug. "I would.”

“Do you think we can do something Saturday? Or maybe Sunday. Because you have things to do, don’t you?” Jack asked. 

Bitty thought of his schedule. He did have a few things he had to deal with. A small bake sale. A few cakes to make for an event. His Saturday was looking busy. “Will he be here that long?”

"I think if we ask him to come around, then he will be,” Jack said. “Sunday?”

“Sunday is a better day for me than Saturday.”

Jack nodded. “I’ll let him know,” he said. He pulled out his phone and texted Kent an invite. 

 

 **Jack:**  
Dinner? My Place? Sunday?

 **Kent:**  
That doesn’t seem like a smart idea.

 **Jack:**  
Come on, Kent. Please?

 **Jack:**  
Bitty suggested it.

 **Kent:**  
That sounds fake.

 **Jack:**  
It’s true. So, do you think you can make it?

 **Kent:**  
I’ll let you know.

 **Jack:**  
Thanks, Kenny.

 **Kent:**  
Yeah. No problem. 

 

Jack put his phone away and looked up to see Bitty staring at him. “He said he’d let me know,” he said.

“You think he’ll try and make it?” Bitty asked.

Jack wished he knew Kent well enough to be able to answer. 

Jack received a text from Kent at two in the morning saying that he’d be there. 


	2. Chapter 2

Bitty put together a huge menu for the three of them. Well, mostly for Jack and Kent since he knew just how much hockey players could and needed to eat. He surprised himself by how much food he had made. He tried to figure out why he was working so hard. It wasn’t like he was trying to impress Kent or anything.

But he knew how important this was to Jack.

Bitty noticed that Jack texted Kent often enough in two days that his phone was always in hand. And he was always looking at the screen. And, smiling?

Just as Bitty finished up with dessert, there was a knock on the door. Jack went to answer and smiled when he saw Kent standing on the other side with a bottle of wine in hand. “You didn’t have to bring anything,” he said like he did three days before.

Kent held the bottle out to Jack. “Yeah. But. Still,” he said. "I didn’t know what we were having or if Eric drank wine, but this is the stuff I remember your parents always letting us drink.” He sighed, and stayed out in the hallway. “Which, thinking about it now, is really dumb. You might not even drink wine anymore. And it just brings up dumb memories. And—”

“Kent, come in, please,” Jack interrupted politely.

Kent snapped his mouth shut and nodded. He took his hat off before stepping into the apartment and ran his fingers through his hair to try and fix it. He put his hat on the coat rack near the door, figuring it was the polite thing to do. “Do you need help setting the table or anything?” he asked.

“Kent, you’re a guest,” Jack said.

“So, no?”

“Go sit on the couch and relax. I’ll pour some wine. Bitty should be done with dinner soon.”

Kent nodded and walked toward the living room, passing the kitchen as he did. “Hi, Eric,” he said softly. "I brought wine, if that’s okay.”

“Thank you,” Bitty said, still facing the oven, needing to stir the sauce so it didn’t stick.

Kent nodded, not wanting to get in the way. He went to sit on the couch like Jack had suggested. He sat on one end while Jack sat on the other. He watched whatever was on TV. Vikings, apparently. 

At the end of the episode, Jack shut off the TV and led the way to the dining table. Kent was the first to sit down, followed by Jack, then Bitty.

Kent looked at the food spread out in front of him. It was a lot. And it all looked so good. “Holy shit,” he whispered. His eyes went wide and he looked up at Bitty sitting across from him. “Sorry,” he said. 

“It’s fine, Kent.” Jack reached over and grabbed the salad bowl to serve himself. He then passed it to Kent.

The three of them spent the next few minutes in quiet, putting food on their plates. Kent then took a bite of the food and let out a soft groan. He hadn’t eaten all day. He blushed when he realized he was making some inappropriate sounds. He picked up the napkin to wipe his mouth before setting it back down on his lap. He looked at Jack and Bitty and saw they were watching him. “So. Hi,” he said softly, reaching for the glass of wine and taking a sip. He hoped they didn’t see how badly his hands were shaking. 

“So eloquent,” Bitty said before taking a bite of his salad.

“Bittle,” Jack said in a scolding voice without actually scolding.

“Sorry,” Bitty said, taking a sip of wine.

Kent shook his head and set the glass down. “No, it’s fine,” he said. "I don’t really know how to talk to people unless it’s hockey related.”

“Well, since there’s no hockey talk at the dining table, this will probably be a quiet conversation on your end.”

“Bittle,” Jack said with a little more force. Bitty promised he was going to be civil.

“Jack, it’s fine,” Kent said, trying to pacify the situation before it got out of hand. “Don’t fight because of me.”

“We’re not fighting,” Jack and Bitty said at the same time.

“And, if we were, we wouldn’t fight because of you.”

“Right,” Kent said. “Of course.” He kept his head down as he finished eating the food that was on his plate. 

Bitty was right. He didn’t speak much for most of dinner.

The three of them got through the meal without fights or almost fights or thinking that there were fights happening.

Kent offered to help clean up again, but Bitty and Jack looked at him to remind him that he was still a guest in their home. Kent had no idea what they were going to do now that they were done with dinner. Were they going to try and have some polite conversation? Were they going to finish up the wine that he brought for them? He wasn’t sure.

One thing was for sure, though. Kent was going to finish at least the glass that Jack had poured for him earlier in their meal. He sat on the couch waiting for them to finish cleaning up. He looked up when he felt the two of them standing behind him.

He stood up, figuring it was the polite thing to do. “So, um…” He snapped his mouth shut figuring that it wasn’t making him look good in front of Bitty. “Thanks for inviting me over,” he finally said. 

“Thanks for agreeing to come.”

"I was around,” Kent replied. 

“Kent,” Jack said. He knew that Kent wasn’t telling the complete truth. And that was okay.

“Okay, fine,” Kent said with a sigh. “I thought it would be…” He paused to start again. "I wanted to try to get to know the person Jack’s head over heels in love with.”

“He’s not,” Bitty said while Jack said, “I’m not.”

“Cute,” Kent said with a laugh. “You two practiced that. But, come on. I haven’t seen that look on Jack’s face since—” He abruptly cut off the conversation. “Ever,” he said quickly hoping no one noticed his hesitation. 

Jack and Bitty looked at each other. “Ever?” Bitty asked.

“Pretty sure you’re his first love,” Kent said with a huge smile. It seemed genuine. Like Kent actually believed that.

“Really?” Bitty asked, incredulous.

“Good choice, by the way,” Kent said.

“Really?” Bitty repeated, again incredulous. 

“Unless he totally fell in love with someone before he met you. Which seems ridiculous, right?”

“Kenny,” Jack said. It may have sounded like a warning. But this was the second time someone mentioned him and his love life. Especially when it came to his past.

Kent stared at Jack with wide eyes. He nodded once. “My cue to leave.”

“What?” Bitty and Jack said.

Kent pointed to the empty wine glasses. “I say stupid things all the time.”

“Kent,” Jack said. “It’s okay. You can stay.”

"I gotta head out,” he said. “It’s getting late.”

“It’s eight thirty,” Bitty countered. 

"I gotta drive back to Boston.”

“You can stay the night,” Bitty and Jack offered.

Jack looked at Bitty with wide eyes. Jack was expected to be the one to offer a stay. He was surprised that Bitty had done the same. 

Kent let out a laugh. “Man, the two of you are on the weirdest wavelength, huh? It’s adorable.” He stood up and reached for his head to adjust his hat that he forgot that he had taken off. Instead, he just brushed his hair back and laughed. “And you’re both way to polite. I guess that’s what you get when a Canadian is in love with a Southern gentleman.”

“Kenny. Please,” Jack said. He wasn’t sure what tone he was using. Was he pleading? He didn’t think so. But, he didn’t want Kent to leave just yet. They didn’t talk much the entire night.

“It’s cool, Jack. This was good.” He looked at Bitty and smiled. “Thanks again for the invite. If you’re ever in Vegas, give me a call.” He furrowed his brow. “Or don’t. No pressure.”

“Kent,” Jack said with a smile when he saw that Kent was rambling.

“Right,” Kent said. “Wine ramblings.” He reached for his head again, but stopped. “We should do this again. We can make it a yearly thing, or something?” It was nice to have dinner with the Bitty and Jack. It reminded Kent of the dinners he used to have with the Zimmermanns, except with a lot more snark.

“Yearly?” Bitty asked.

“Or every two years. Whatever’s good for you two. Ball’s in your court. Or puck’s in your rink? Zone? Both of those sound dumb,” Kent said. “I’m gonna head out now before this bothers me enough that I won’t be able to sleep.” He looked at his watch and sighed. "I think that traffic is probably calmed down enough that I can make it back to Boston and it won’t take two hours, huh?”

"I think you should be okay. You’re okay to drive?”

“Yeah. I’m good. If anything, I’ll take as many backstreets as I need to.”

“Be safe.”

Kent nodded and headed to the door. “Okay. Thanks again. Enjoy the rest of that wine. Apparently that year was a good year,” he said with a smile. “I’ll see you in a few months, Jack. Better be ready for us.”

Jack smiled. “See you later, Kent.”

Then Kent was out the door and on his way back to Boston. 

Bitty headed back to the kitchen to finish packing away all the leftovers. It would be a good meal for the two of them for the next few days. “Maybe we can invite Tater over to eat some of the leftovers we have.”

“I’m sure he’d like that,” Jack said. He poured a glass of wine for each of them. “That went well.”

"I think so too,” Bitty said, considering how minimal the conversation was and short the time they spent together.

“Yeah?” Jack asked, hopeful. 

"I don’t think I could tolerate him for long periods of time, but it was nice to see him in a more personal setting.”

"I told you he wasn’t that bad,” Jack said, holding out Bitty’s wine glass. He had been trying to convince Bitty of that since the invitation.

“Well, obviously he was trying to be on his best behavior,” Bitty said. He did notice just how polite he was. All the offers to help set and clean up. The standing every time Bitty or Jack went back to the kitchen. The fact that he didn’t wear hats at the dining table. And he kept to the no hockey talk rule. "I can appreciate that.”

“Maybe you just need to get to know him better. I think that you two would get along great.”

“It might be a little tricky.”

“Because he lives in Las Vegas?”

“Because I know that he’s still in love with you,” Bitty said as if the answer were obvious.

Jack choked on the sip of wine he was taking. He grabbed his napkin and wiped his mouth. “Bitty. He’s not.”

“Jack,” Bitty said. “You cannot possibly be this naive about this. Did you not see how he kept smiling at you the entire dinner?”

“He was?” Jack wasn’t paying attention because he was focused on Bitty and the amazing meal he had prepared for them. 

“Jack,” Bitty said. Sometimes his boyfriend could be so oblivious.

“He can’t still love me after all this time,” he said. Jack paused. Did he just admit that he knew that Kent had feelings for him back then?

“So, he did love you.”

Of course Bitty would notice. “I… I don’t know. I don’t think he did,” Jack said, trying to recover.

“Why can’t you just tell me what went on between the two of you back in the Q?”

“All we did was play hockey. And make out a couple of times.”

“That was it?”

“Yes, that was it,” Jack said. “There wasn’t time for us to go on dates or do anything else but kissing and sometimes more.” Okay, maybe there was more. “Okay?”

“Okay.”

Bitty let out a sigh and swirled his wine. “Jack. Honey. I love you. You know that, right?”

“Of course,” Jack said. “I love you too.”

“And because I love you, I need to be honest with you.”

“Bitty?”

“Jack. I want you to think about Kent.”

“What?”

“Let me start again. I need you to examine your feelings for Kent.”

“Why?” There was nothing to examine.

“Because it took your dad to realize that you liked me. And I don’t think you understand what you felt for Kent back then.”

“Bitty. I didn’t feel anything for him.” He knew what Kent and he were to each other. Or, at least, what he was to Kent.

“He was your friend.”

“He was. Is.”

“That you don’t treat like any of the friends you have now.”

“Bitty.” It was jarring how much Kent and Bitty thought like each other, sometimes. 

“I just want you to be honest with yourself, Jack. If you really think that you and Kent were just friends, fine. But you’re not really friends now and I’m pretty sure you were more than just friends back then.”

“I don’t know.”

“That’s why I want you to think about it.”

Jack sighed softly. “All of that is in the past.”

“So, why can’t he just stay in the past?”

“He…” Jack sighed and shook his head. "I know it sounds dumb, but he was my first best friend. And he’s been in this league for so long. And I want to know how he’s doing. I get to have all of this. I have you. I have great friends. I want to make sure that he’s happy too.”

“You wanted him to be engaged.”

“If he was happy.” Jack saw the look that Bitty was giving him. He couldn’t exactly read what it meant. “What?”

Bitty took a long sip of his wine. “He knows his stuff,” he said, holding up the glass.

“It’s just what we used to drink with mom and dad.” Something he didn’t do with the rest of his teammates at the Q. They did have history, even if Jack didn’t want to think too much about it.

Bitty finished the rest of the glass. Then he stood up. “We should head to bed,” he said. 

He walked toward the bedroom, looking at the front door to make sure that it was locked.

Jack had the same idea and walked to the door to actually check them. “Oh,” he said softly.

“What?”

“Kent forgot his hat,” he said, picking it up off the coat rack.

Bitty sighed. "I guess that means he’ll be coming here again, huh?”

Jack looked over and saw that Bitty looked tired. Not only because of how hard he’d been working the last few days, but because of how he had to deal with Kent even though he did not like him very much. Seeing Kent three times in less than a week may be too much for Bitty.

“No,” Jack said. “I’ll just bring it to our first game against the Aces and give it to him. I’ll send him a text to let him know that I have it.”

“Text him later,” Bitty said. “You don’t want him checking his phone while he’s driving.”

“I’ll text him tomorrow morning.”

Jack nodded and put his arm around Bitty as they walked to the bedroom. All he wanted to do was fall asleep with Bitty in his arms. For him, it was a good day. He got to reconnect with Kent. He had an amazing meal. And he got to go to sleep with the man that he loved. 

The next morning, he woke up and saw a text from Kent. 

 

 **Kenny:**  
Hey. I just realized that I left my hat at your place. I’ll just get it back to you when we play in November, if that’s cool.

 **Jack Z:**  
I’ll keep it safe.

 

The next big event for the three of them was Jack’s birthday. Jack thought for a long time on whether to invite Kent. He talked about it with Bitty and Bitty was, for the most part, helpful.

Even though Jack wanted Kent to be there, it would’ve been a little awkward to have him at a party where the only people he knew were Jack, his boyfriend that didn’t think too highly of him, and NHL players from a rival team.

Bitty tried to counter and say that his opinion of Kent wasn’t that bad. That still didn’t change the fact that Kent would still be alone while surrounded by a bunch of people. 

In the end, Jack decided that maybe they weren’t at that level yet. Maybe next year, Jack would be able to invite Kent to whatever he was doing for his birthday.

Still, Kent wished him a happy birthday, which was nice of him.

It was through text, as it was always been.

Kent even texted how surprised he was that he got a text back. 

After Jack’s birthday, Bitty felt it was okay for the three of them to be in a group chat together. Jack wished it wasn’t as awkward as he knew it was. Most of the conversation took place between Jack and Bitty, but every time they wanted to hear from Kent he would reply.

Jack noticed that Bitty was softening toward Kent little by little. Whenever Kent would text back he’d see Bitty either roll his eyes in a fond sort of way, or just laugh. 

Jack would always smile at Bitty whenever he changed his expression after being caught. “Kent doing okay?” he would ask.

“You know he is,” he said. “He just send pictures of his cats. In hats.” He rolled his eyes after saying that. "I don’t know why anyone things that he’s actually cool.”

“Hockey persona. And he’s in Vegas. It automatically makes you cool.”

“Does it?” Bitty asked with his eyebrow raised.

Jack shrugged. “So, he doing okay?”

“Honestly, I’m not sure. He keeps texting about how miserable the weather is. But then he talks about how he has a pool. And his cats.”

“Sounds like him,” Jack said with a smile.

Bitty looked up at Jack. Although Jack smiled all the time, now, since talking to Kent, he seemed almost lighter. “What are you thinking, honey?” he asked.

Jack looked up and made his expression neutral again. “Nothing.” He didn’t want to tell Bitty that he was thinking about Kent alone in Vegas.

And definitely not about him in his backyard poolside.

“Jack.”

“Just thinking about him.” Bitty had told him to think about him, so he did. A lot of it was still a jumbled mess, but he was slowly coming to the realization that maybe they weren't just friends who sometimes made out. “There… there were days when I didn’t think we’d ever talk again, you know?”

“Well, I’m proud of you for taking those steps, honey,” Bitty said, leaning over to kiss him on his cheek. “It’s nice.”

"I like that we might get to be friends again." Jack would smile every time Bitty and Kent got into it in the group chat. They argued about almost everything, but with every argument there was a good amount of chirping involved. They seemed to get along. And the conversations made Bitty smile more often than not. “I just hope that you’ll feel the same way I do about him.” 

“Oh?” Bitty said, a bit concerned about the wording. He wondered exactly how he felt about him.

“Why the look?” Jack asked.

“Nothing,” Bitty said.

“Bitty,” he said, pulling Bitty close to kiss him on his cheek. “Please.”

Bitty shook his head. “It’s just something I'm trying to figure out.”

Jack nodded. “Okay,” he said slowly. He didn’t want to push it because he was still trying to figure things out too.

“Just… be careful, okay?” Bitty could see that this was bringing up his feelings from the past. It wasn’t like their relationship at risk, but it could have been a lot Jack to work through. Bitty wanted to be supportive. 

"I know,” Jack said. “There’s still a lot I have to think about. I’ll take this slow.”

Again with the wording.

Bitty looked at his phone and saw Kent had replied to his text.

 

 **Kent:**  
Check out these #coolcatsinhats

 **Kent:**  
They need attention to survive.

 

Again, the text and the boy made him smile. He shook his head and sighed. That boy, sometimes.

 

 **Bitty:**  
Apparently someone isn’t giving them enough attention at home.

 

Then the idea came to him. “Hey, Jack?”

Jack looked up and smiled. “Yes?”

“If… if I wanted to go to Vegas and call Kent, what would you say?”

Jack stared at Bitty. That was not something he expected him to ask. “As long as I don’t hear about Kent going missing during the trip, I’m okay with it.”

“Jack,” Bitty said with a sigh.  

“I’m kidding,” Jack said. He leaned over to kiss Bitty on his temple. “Any reason why?”

Bitty bit his bottom lip. “I've never been to Las Vegas,” he said after a few moments of silence. “Isn’t it some sort of rite of passage once you turn 21?”

Jack shrugged. “I’ve never heard of that. Then again, I don’t know much about normal rites of passage. This sounds like an American thing.”

“Jack,” Bitty said again with an even deeper sigh than before.

“Bitty,” Jack said back in the same tone.

Bitty looked to the front door. “We… we have his hat. He might miss it.”

Jack smiled and looked at Bitty. He knew that Bitty knew that Jack was going return it to Kent the first game they played against each other. But if Bitty wanted to fly to Vegas and maybe spend time with Kent to get to know him, Jack wasn’t going to stop him. 

"I can let Kent know that you’re planning a trip. When do you want to go?” Jack asked.

"I can text him too,” Bitty said, holding up his phone.

"I forgot that you have his number,” Jack said. Sometimes he’d forget that Kent was in a group chat with them since it was mostly Jack and Bitty talking in it. Whenever Kent popped up, it was always a nice surprise. It was nice now that he was participating in the conversation more.

"I have his number. And his Twitter. And his Instagram,” Bitty replied. “Now, how to go about this.”

“Bitty,” Jack said with a sigh. “Don’t make this a big thing.”

“It’s my first trip to Vegas, of course it’s going to be a big thing.” He furrowed his brow for a few minutes before finally figuring out how he was going to let Kent know that he was going to be in Vegas in the near future. 

 

 **Eric Bittle** @omgcheckplease 12 August 2017  
I’m thinking of a trip to Vegas. Anyone in? Also, what is there to do in Vegas?

 

Bitty smiled when he saw that Kent had favorited the tweet a few minutes later. 


	3. Chapter 3

Bitty planned the trip for some time in September. The three of them had sent texts back and forth making sure everything would be perfect. Most of Bitty’s texts were him saying how excited he was and all the things he wanted to do once he got to Vegas.

So many shows. And walking the Strip. And Fremont Street. And more shows.

He wished Jack could have come with him, but Jack was deep in preseason mode. Bitty knew he wouldn’t be able to go away for almost a week. 

Kent was most helpful as he tried to give suggestion after suggestion of what Bitty could do while there. The best shows that he had to go to on his first trip. He restaurants where Kent had the hook up. Hikes and Hoover Dam if the weather permitted.

Bitty had his itinerary planned out. It was going to be a great trip.

With one last kiss with Jack, he was on his plane and heading west.

When Bitty stepped out of the airport, he was greeted by two things: The Las Vegas heat and the Las Vegas Aces Captain. 

"I offered to pick you up, if that’s okay,” Kent said. He put his hand over his mouth to let out a yawn. “Your hotel isn’t far away so we won’t be in the car with each other for very long.”

“Oh,” Bitty said. “Thank you. But my check in isn’t until three.”

“Huh,” Kent said. He led the way into the parking structure and walked up to his 4Runner. "I forgot that’s a thing that happens.” He unlocked the car and popped open the back to put Bitty’s bags into his car. He furrowed his brow for a few seconds as he tried to think of something. “There are a few food places around that I can drop you off at. And I can come get you closer to your check in time.”

“Did you eat already?” Bitty asked as he followed Kent to the passenger side of his car. He watched Kent open the door for him. He stepped in and buckled in as Kent shut the door.

Kent got into the driver’s side and started the car so he could blast the AC. “I’m not hungry.”

“That didn’t really answer my question,” Bitty said. He pulled his phone out so that he could text Jack that he landed safely and that he was with Kent. 

“I’m good, Eric,” Kent said. "I already ate,” he added.

“You’re a terrible liar,” Bitty said.

“What?”

“Your shirt is inside out,” Bitty said. “You just woke up, didn’t you?”

Kent blushed deeply. "I did just wake up. I got caught up in a Netflix binge.” He looked back so he could reverse out of his spot. “Okay,” he said. “There’s this really awesome brunch place that I think you’d like. It’s not too far from your hotel, but it’s not really like walking distance either. They have this tea thing happening, right now. Which will kill a few hours of wait time. You wanna go?”

“Sure. As long as I don’t have to be outside for it,” Bitty said. “This heat just feels exhausting already.”

“You’re not the only one that feels that way,” Kent said as he drove down the structure and went to pay. He pulled onto the freeway. "I swear all I did was take naps my first summer here. Well, and play hockey.” He blushed and kept his eyes on the road.

Bitty noticed. “Why are you blushing?”

“Talking about hockey,” Kent said softly. “Sorry. I swear, I can talk about other things.”

Bitty felt a little bad. Knowing Jack, and being a hockey player himself, he knew that hockey took up a majority of his conversations. He didn’t want Kent to think that it was better for him to not talk at all instead of talk about hockey. “It’s okay,” he said reassuringly.

Kent shook his head. "I figure you hear about hockey all the time that you’d rather not talk about it. Especially on your vacation.” He looked over and saw that his radio wasn’t on. “You can be in charge of the music. If you have Spotify or something, you can just connect your phone to the AUX cord.”

Bitty turned on the radio, but kept the volume low. “So, how hot is it today?”

"I think it’s supposed to get to 99. Right now, it’s…” Kent looked over at his car thermometer and saw that it read 90. “That’s a few degrees off. It’s either 92 or 87.”

“It’s so early, though.”

“Global warming isn’t real,” Kent said with a laugh. He stayed quiet as he weaved in and out of the traffic. “How was Jack’s birthday?” he asked as he got into the right lane and stayed there. “If it’s okay to talk about. If not, that’s cool. Not my place to ask. Sorry.”

“It was nice,” Bitty said. “All his friends were there.” He watched as one of Kent’s hands let go of the steering wheel so he could wipe his hand on his shorts. He realized what he had said and how insensitive it sounded.

“The pictures looked fun,” Kent said so there wasn't too much of an awkward silence. “He’s getting old, huh?”

“You’re the same age as he is,” Bitty said. 

“That is true,” Kent said. He signaled so that he could make it to the exit. “It’s smart that you chose a hotel on the edge of the Strip. Dealing with traffic on it is ass.”

“You going to be driving to see me often?” he asked. 

Kent’s eyes widened. “I… uh… I just figured I could drive you around? I’m cheaper than a taxi or an Uber.” He took a few turned and ended up at a plaza. He then parked at a cute restaurant. “Here you are,” he said as he shut off the car. He unbuckled his seatbelt and quickly flipped his shirt. “Come on. I’ll walk you in and they’ll put everything on my tab.”

"I can pay for things,” Bitty said with a frown.

"I know, I know. Your baking business is doing amazing. But you’ll get the secret specials if they know that you know me.” He led the way out of his car and into the restaurant. He walked straight to the counter and waved. “Hi, Noreen,” he said with a smile. “This is my friend, Eric.”

“Well,” Noreen said. “Any friend of Mr. Ace is a friend of ours. For two?” She picked up two menus. 

“Yes,” Bitty said before Kent could say anything else.

“Are you sure?” Kent asked, following Bitty who was following Noreen.

“Yes. I need to you to tell me what’s good here.”

“It’s all good,” Kent said.

“Kent’s too kind,” Noreen said. She set the menus down at a table in the corner. “Dante will keep an eye on you two and make sure that you aren’t disturbed, Kent. I’ll come bring you your strawberry lemonade in a sec. You want anything to drink, Eric?”

“Water for now,” he said.

“I’ll be right back,” she said, leaving them alone.

“You come here often?”

“That sounds like a line,” Kent said with a laugh. “But, yeah. I stumbled on this place when I first moved here. It was a lot smaller. And it was open only for like two months. But I fell in love with their breakfast mac and cheese. And then I kept showing up.”

“And bringing your fans with you?”

“That was an accident,” Kent said. “These guys didn’t even know who I was for the first three months.”

“I’m sure they appreciate the business you bring.”

Kent shrugged. “Maybe?”

"I mean, enough for people to look out for you while you’re here.” Bitty grabbed his menu and opened it up. “Okay,” he said. “So, the breakfast mac and cheese is good. What else?”

“Every omelette. And sandwiches. And their burgers. Whatever you get, you have to get tots.”

“Why tots?” Bitty asked.

"I don’t know what it is about them, but they're a friggen godsend. Like straight from God. I break my diet for them at least twice a week,” Kent said. 

When Noreen returned with their drinks, Kent ordered his breakfast mac and cheese with a side of tots. Bitty ordered a Montecristo sandwich, also with a side of tots.

Kent took a sip of his lemonade and waited before trying to start up another conversation. “So. Um. You have the Cirque show today, right?”

Bitty nodded and took a sip of his water. "I think so,” he said. “I’ll have to look at my schedule.”

“Well, you’ll get into your nice, cold, hotel room. Take a nice long nap. Go gamble.”

“That sounds like a good plan. Except the gambling,” he said.

“You gotta gamble just a little bit, man,” Kent said with a laugh. “Just walk into the casino, go to a Roulette table and throw down a hundred dollars on black.”

"I don’t have a hundred dollars to throw down on black.”

"I will give you a hundred.  Then, when you win, you can pay me back. But you can keep your winnings.”

"I can’t do that,” Bitty said.

Kent shrugged. “It could be fun,” he said. “And it’s a hundred dollars.”

“Bet on black?”

“Always bet on black,” he said. He looked up when Noreen brought over their food. “Thanks, Nor,” he said with a smile. 

“Anything for Mr. Ace,” she said. “Enjoy, you two, okay?”

“Thank you, ma’am,” Bitty said. He looked at the food in front of him and it looked so amazing. He had to pull out his phone and take a picture of it and post it on Instagram before putting his phone away.

 

 **omgcheckplease** Apparently these tots are worth breaking a diet for. We’ll see. #bittytakesovervegas

 

“You’re one of those people?” Kent said, raising his eyebrow.

“Excuse me,” Bitty said, raising his eyebrow back. “I’ve seen your Instagram. At least half of those pictures are food.” A fourth was work out pictures.

“Meal prep doesn’t count.”

“Okay, but what about the champagne and the restaurants.” And abs.

“It’s more for plugging the restaurants.”

That made sense. Kent was famous. And he had followers. If Kent liked something, then it would generate a lot of business for the item or place. He then picked up a tot and looked it over. “Okay,” he said. “These better be worth the hype.” 

“Well, if you don’t like them, I will totally take them off your plate,” Kent said. He picked up his fork and stabbed at his mac and cheese. He waited to eat as he wanted to see what Bitty thought of the tot first. He smiled when Bitty popped it into his mouth. “So?” he asked after Bitty swallowed.

Bitty washed it down with a sip of water. “I… I can see why you’d break your diet for them.”

“Right?”

“But tots and mac and cheese?”

“It goes with the potatoes in the mac and cheese.”

“Okay, why are there potatoes in the mac and cheese?”

“Because it’s the hash browns part of the breakfast.”

Bitty rolled his eyes. “I guess that makes sense,” he said. He then took a bite out of his sandwich. Kent did know his brunch places.

The two of them finished their meals in silence. Noreen offered them the tea service, but Bitty politely declined. They needed to head to the hotel soon.

Kent went up to the counter to pay for everything and smiled when Noreen handed him a small box. He waited for Bitty and handed it over to him as they walked to the car. “Noreen gave you scones.”

“I should go back and thank her,” he said, ready to head back into the restaurant. 

“It’s fine, Eric,” Kent said. “I already said you’d appreciate it.” He unlocked his car and opened the door for Bitty. He shut the door once Bitty buckled in and then got in so he could drive to the hotel. 

It wasn’t a long drive. But it was a quiet one. 

Once there, Kent helped Bitty get his things out of the back of his car and walked with him to the entrance. The second they got into the casino he went to trade a hundred for a chip and handed it to Bitty. “Go. A hundred on black.”

He then stood off to the side to watch.

Bitty rolled his eyes and left his bags with Kent as he walked to a roulette table and did what Kent had said. 

A hundred. On black. 

His eyes went wide when he won a few seconds later. 

He was in a bit of a daze as he headed back to Kent. He tried to hand back the chip. “I… won.”

“Always bet on black,” he teased. He shook his head at the chip. “Keep it. You can pay me back at the end of your trip, or something.” He held onto Bitty’s bag. “Come on. Let’s get you checked in.”

Bitty followed and pulled out his information then went to the front desk. He was checked in after a few minutes. “I’m in a suite,” he said with a smile. 

Kent had to smile. “That’s cool. Okay. Well. Have a good trip.” He turned to head back to the parking lot.

“Where are you going?” Bitty asked. 

“Back to my house?”

“Why?”

“Because that’s where I live?”

Bitty’s eyes went wide. “Oh.” 

Kent saw the look on Bitty’s face. “I did something wrong,” he said. “Oh no.”

“I just thought,” Bitty said softly. He shook his head. “Never mind.”

“What?” Kent asked. Clearly he was missing something. “You thought that what?”

Bitty sighed. “I thought that you were going to show me around.”

“Oh,” Kent said. His eyes went wide. “Oh! That. Yeah, I can do that. I can totally do that.”

“Was that not the plan?” Bitty asked. 

“I mean…” He looked around and saw they were having a pretty heavy conversation in the lobby of a hotel. “Maybe we should head up?”

Bitty nodded and headed to the elevator.  The ride up to the top floor was quiet. Bitty led the way out and toward the room. He stepped in and his eyes went wide. “Oh my goodness,” he said softly. “This is… huge.”

“Suites usually are,” he said.

Bitty flopped onto the bed and sighed. “I wish Jack were here,” he said softly. They would have a lot of fun in the hotel. And it would be nice for the two of them to relax away from the east coast.

“Right,” Kent said softly. “So. I should… let you relax.”

“So, is this the last time I’m seeing you?” Bitty asked, sitting up and staring at him.

“I… yes?” Kent lifted his hat up and brushed his fingers through his hair before putting his hat back on. “I think that there was a bit of miscommunication.”

“I think so.”

“I thought you were here to see the shows? I was pretty sure I was the last person you wanted to see on this trip,” Kent said. 

“Jack didn’t tell you that I wanted to talk to you?” Then again, he could’ve said it too.

Kent shook his head. “No. I mean, you told both of us you were coming in today and it’d be nice if I could give you suggestions of things to do while you were here.”

“You said to call if we were ever in Vegas.”

“I didn’t think you’d actually do it,” Kent said. 

“So, it was an empty gesture,” Bitty said, crossing his arms over his chest. Well, that was frustrating. Still. He was going to have fun, even if Kent wasn’t around.

“No, no,” Kent said softly. “I offered. It was a real offer. I didn’t think you’d take me up on it. But if you did, that’d be cool.”

“Why else would I come to Vegas?” he asked. 

“Definitely not for the weather,” Kent said with an almost forced laugh. “But you kept talking about going to see J.Lo and Ricky Martin. Both great shows, by the way. I’m kinda bummed you missed Brit. And of course you’d come the one month the Backstreet Boys aren’t here.”

“Kent,” Bitty said, stopping him from rambling on. “You thought the only reason I came was for the shows?”

“I can show you the texts. You were really excited.”

“I was.” Bitty thought back to the texts between the three of them. He did talk about the shows a lot. He frowned when he couldn’t remember if he had actually said he wanted to hang out with Kent. 

“Which is understandable. They’re superstars. Definitely worth seeing. And it’s nice that the season hasn’t started yet so you don’t have to miss any Falcs games.”

“Kent,” Bitty said with a sigh. “I thought it was implied that we were going to hang out.”

“I’m not good with people implying things. I kinda need it in writing?”

“What if I did come here to see you?” Bitty said. 

“I’m right here?” Kent asked. 

“No,” Bitty said with a groan. Maybe this misunderstanding was mostly on him. “I mean, what if the reason I came all the way down here was to see you.”

“I’d be really confused.”

“Why?”

Kent figured it was probably best for him to close the distance between them. He walked over to the table in the suite and pulled out a chair to sit. “Okay. This is gonna sound kinda ridiculous, but. I don’t know if you believe in nemesises. Nemeses? Whatever. But I think you think I’m yours?”

“You think of me as your nemesis?”

“No? But I’m pretty sure you think I am yours? But don’t worry, I’m not a threat to your life at all.”

“You’re not,” Bitty said, incredulous. He was sure Kent was trying to get back into Jack’s life and hopefully rekindle some sort of romance between them.

“Dude,” Kent said with a smile. “You and Jack are rock solid. You know that, right?”

“We are.”

“And Jack is good now, you know? He has a better relationship with Bob. He’s in a better state mentally. He has a bunch of friends from school and around the league. He has you. He can be out,” he said softly. “The two of you guys. At that dinner. You two are goals. It was nice to see Jack finally smile and like really, really mean it.” 

Bitty blinked a few times and blushed. He felt a little guilty. So, that was why Kent was staring at Jack all through dinner. “Okay,” he said.

“Okay.”

“So, you named all of these things that’s in Jack’s life now. Where do you fit in?”

Kent tensed. He knew that it was bound to come up. “I don’t,” Kent said softly.

“What do you mean you don’t?”

Kent groaned and leaned back, fixing his hat again. “I’ve been trying to tell Jack that. But the timing is always bad. He had the right idea when tried ghosting me.”

“You want to stop talking to Jack? After all this time?”

“I’m not good for him, Eric. It took so long for him to figure his life out. And when he was finally able to put it all together, there wasn’t really a space for me. Which was fine,” he added quickly. “I’m like that one piece that little kid tries to force into a puzzle because they’re determined to make it fit. But then you realize it was from a different puzzle all together.” 

“That’s… insightful.”

“I try,” Kent said. “You should tell him.”

“I should tell him what?”

“That we don’t need to be friends.”

“Why would I tell him that?” Bitty said. 

“Because that’s what you think.”

If this conversation happened months ago, he would’ve been on board with it. But not now. Now, he considered Kent an almost friend. “I don’t,” he said softly. 

“Come on, Eric. It’s fine. I don’t need to be liked by everyone. Contrary to what the entire world says.” He stared at Bitty as he waited for him to say something. When he didn’t he stood up. “Do you want me to go or?”

Bitty stared at Kent in front of him. Well, at this point, his itinerary was still good. But Kent didn’t want to be there.

Or he didn’t know Bitty wanted him to be there. And Kent wasn’t good at things being implied. “We have a show at seven,” he said. “You can go home, but I want you back by six so we aren’t late. Unless you have plans.”

Kent nodded. “Okay,” he said. “I’ll be here by six. Um…”

Bitty pulled out the second key card. “Here,” he said. “Just let yourself in.”

“Yeah. Okay. I’ll let you know when I’m on my way.”

“Okay. Drive safe.”

Kent nodded once and left Bitty alone in his hotel room.

Bitty stood up and started to unpack his things. The first thing he saw was Kent’s hat. Well, he’d have to give it back to him eventually since it was his excuse to come to Vegas.

Once he was settled in, he pulled his phone to text Jack.

 

 **Eric:**  
I’m settled in my hotel room.

 **Eric:**  
I really wish you were here with me.

 **This Boy:**  
I wish I was with you too. How is everything?

 **Eric:**  
It’s good. But something happened.

 **This Boy:**  
With Kent?

 **Eric:**  
He didn’t know I was here to see him.

 **This Boy:**  
Oh.

 **Eric:**  
Did you know that’s what he thought?

 **This Boy:**  
You didn’t exactly invite him to join you on all of those shows he suggested to you.

 **Eric:**  
It was implied.

 **This Boy:**  
He’s not good with things being implied.

 **Eric:**  
So I’ve heard.

 **This Boy:**  
So, what did you do?

 **Eric:**  
I told him that we’re hanging out tonight.

 **This Boy:**  
Good.

 **Eric:**  
And I’m going to make sure he knows that we’re hanging out every day while I’m here.

 **This Boy:**  
Every day?

 **Eric:**  
Yes. Every day. That was the plan.

 **This Boy:**  
Okay.

 **This Boy:**  
Bits?

 **Eric:**  
Yes, sweetie?

 **This Boy:**  
Be patient with him.

 **Eric:**  
I can be patient.

 **This Boy:**  
I know. So, how is Vegas?

 **Eric:**  
Hot. Very hot. And they have good tots.

 **This Boy:**  
Those things don’t have anything to do with each other, do they?

 

Bitty smiled. The two of them texted back and forth before Jack had to go do something with the Falconers. Bitty took a nap, then headed downstairs to check out the casino.

There were so many people. And it was so busy. 

It was so different from life back east.

He actually wondered how anyone could handle living here.

And Kent had done it for years.

At 5:30, he headed back up to his room to get ready. At exactly 6:00, there was a knock on the door. “Come in!” he called. Then the door opened.

Kent walked into the room and slid his hands into his pockets. “So. You ready?” he asked.

Bitty couldn’t help but stare. He always knew that Kent Parson was handsome, but seeing him standing in a gray button down shirt and jeans. Of course, he had a hat on, but it pulled his outfit together.

Bitty nodded and stood up. “Does it take long to get there?”

“Not really?” Kent said. “But Vegas drivers are kinda the worst. So, it’s good to head out early. We could walk, but Vegas weather is ass, right now. So, we’re not gonna do that. Then we can walk around the casino. Maybe get something to eat first. Whatever you wanna do. Your trip.”

Bitty nodded. “Let’s head out.”

Kent smiled and opened the door for Bitty. “Did you gamble any while I was gone?”

“I walked around downstairs. Got asked if I was old enough to walk around about four times,” he said. “I didn’t realize that was actually a thing.”

“Liability and all that,” Kent said, heading to the elevator. 

“So, does the bet on black thing work in every casino?” Bitty asked, pressing the button to head down.

“Not really too sure?” Kent asked. “Shall we test it out?”

“I don’t have enough money to test it out.” Bitty watched Kent reach for his wallet. “Don’t you dare,” he said. 

“I’ll bet on black,” Kent said with a laugh. Once the elevator doors opened, he was the first to step out.

As they walked through the casino to the parking lot, Bitty was actually surprised at how little Kent was stopped.

Kent led the way to the car, opening the door for Bitty. He buckled in and started the drive to the hotel for the first show.

“You just walked around through the casino and were stopped once. By someone wearing a hockey jersey,” Bitty said.

“I am a hockey player?”

“I just thought you’d get stopped more often,” he said. “Jack is stopped all the time in Providence.”

“Eric,” Kent said with a laugh. “I know I'm like… kinda famous, but I’m not the most famous person in Vegas. This place is full of celebrities and what not.” He pulled out of the parking structure and headed down the Strip. “Honestly, if I’m not wearing a jersey, I just look like a basic white boy.”

Bitty looked over at Kent. “That was… almost self-deprecating?”

“Almost,” Kent said with a laugh. “More honest than anything else.”

Bitty looked over and nodded. “I guess.” He looked down the street as they traveled down the road. He could not believe that people were walking around in this weather.

The drive was short enough and Kent pulled into the entrance of another hotel. He stepped out and smiled as he handed the valet his keys. Bitty watched as Kent let out a genuine sounding laugh and take a selfie with the valet before waving Bitty over.

Bitty got out  and watched the valet drive away with Kent’s car. “You know that guy?” he asked.

Kent shook his head. “No idea who that is,” he said. “I may not be that famous, but I’m famous enough that some people know me.”

“Selfie was a payment?”

Kent nodded. “I mean, I’m still gonna pay him, but yeah.” He rested a hand on Bitty’s back and led him into the hotel. 

With how loud it was inside, they couldn’t really talk. It wasn’t until they got to the entrance of the show that they could have a conversation.

Bitty let out a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness.”

“You okay?” Kent asked.

“Just… a lot of people.”

Kent laughed. “It happens,” he said. He walked up and got the tickets for the two of them and shoved them into his pocket. “You wanna walk around? Get something to eat real quick? We have an hour.”

Bitty looked at his watch and saw that they had some time. “It gives us time to bet on black,” he said.

Kent smiled. “Yes. Okay. Let’s do that.” He led the way to a cashier and got a few chips. He handed them to Bitty. “Go nuts,” he said.

“How much is this?” Bitty asked.

“Two hundred?” Kent said with a shrug.

“Why aren’t you sure?” he asked.

“Because I don’t want you to freak out about it,” Kent said. “Just take it. It’s fine. It’s what gambling is.”

“But it’s not my money,” Bitty said.

Kent shrugged again. “Just do it, man. How many chances will you get to waste someone else’s money?”

“Good point.” Bitty walked through the crowds of people and stood at a roulette table. He put one chip on black and waited. He looked over and saw Kent standing off to the side. Bitty had to roll his eyes when he won again. He took his winnings and headed to Kent. “Don’t…” he said.

“I wasn’t gonna say anything,” Kent said.

Bitty tried to hand over the chip again. Like before, Kent shook his head. “I’m keeping a running tab of how much money I owe you.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Kent said.

“I can’t just take your money,” he said.

“We’ll figure something out,” Kent said. “Food?”

Bitty shook his head. “It’s a little early for me to eat. Unless you’re hungry.”

“I’m good,” Kent said. “Wherever you wanna go, I’ll lead. Just gotta head back soon, you know? For the show.”

The two of them walked around until it was time to head back to the show. Of course, Kent got Bitty some of the best seats.

The show itself was amazing. Bitty had fallen in love and was glad that he was seeing a few more Cirque shows before his trip ended.

At the end of it, Bitty was riding a high, and was excited for the rest of his trip. He got into Kent’s car and looked over while Kent sent a text before buckling in. “What next?”

Kent dropped his phone onto his lap. “Uh. What?”

“What else are we doing tonight?” Bitty asked. “It’s not even ten.”

“Uh,” Kent said. “Tacos?”

“Like, Taco Bell?”

“Fuck no,” Kent said. He tensed and shook his head. “I mean, of course not.” He picked his phone up and sent out a text before putting it in his cup holder. “Tacos.”

“Who are you texting?”

“Teammates,” Kent said. “They want food. You cool if they tag along?”

“Does it matter? You already invited them to tacos.”

“There are a hundred taco places here, Eric. I can send them one place, and we can go to another, if you want. The last thing I wanna do is make you feel uncomfortable.”

“Well, thank you. But, let’s meet your teammates.”

“I’ve already met them.”

“You, hush. Drive.”

Kent laughed and pulled onto the Strip for a few lights before pulling off onto a back road. “So, what did you think of the show?”

“It was amazing. Are they all like this?”

“The ones I’ve been too, I’m gonna say, yes?” Kent said. “I haven’t been to a lot.”

“You’ve been here for years.”

“Not enough time,” he said. 

“You can’t be that busy.”

“I like sleep.” Kent then pulled off onto another road, then another. A few minutes later they pulled into a plaza where there was a crowd of guys already there. “Fuckers,” he said with a laugh.

“That them?”

“That’s them,” Kent said. He parked, got out of the car and waited for Bitty before walking over.

“Oh captain, our captain.”

“Sup, Swoops,” Kent said. “Teammates,” he said. “This is Eric. Friend from the east.”

“Nice to meet you,” Bitty said with a smile.

Swoops’ eyes went wide. “Not like… the east coast? That’s not an east coast accent.”

“He’s a smart one,” Simpson said.

“We’re so proud of him,” added the older Troy.

“Fuck off,” Swoops said. “Cap promised us tacos.”

“No, I invited you to tacos. I promised nothing.”

“Betrayal,” Swoops said.

“You can be betrayed out here,” Kent said. “I want tacos.”

“Me too,” Bitty said. “I’m starving.”

Kent walked over and opened the door for everyone. He smiled when Bitty stood next to him and waited with him. “If they’re too much, let me know and we can bail.”

Bitty laughed. “Honey, I lived in a frat house for three years. I am also a hockey player. I’m sure I can handle some of them.”

Kent nodded. “Okay,” he said once the last of his teammates walked in. “Since it’s your first time, you have to try one of everything.”

“Really?”

“Or not? I can always give you a few recommendations.”

“I’ll follow your lead,” Bitty said. 

Kent smiled and went straight to the al pastor line. 

Bitty ended up with three al pastor, two chicken, and two carnitas tacos. He sat and listened as a quarter of the Las Vegas Aces team drank, ate, and told stories that made their hockey captain laugh and blush.

Two hours later, he and said captain headed back to the hotel. “Well, your teammates are something,” he said.

“That’s one way to describe them,” he said.

Bitty sighed softly, feeling tired from the first day’s events. “They had a lot of stories,” Bitty said.

“I told them to try not talk about hockey so much,” he said. “Those other stories are what they could come up with?”

“Kent,” Bitty said. “You can talk about hockey. I didn’t want to make it seem like you couldn’t.”

Kent shrugged as they drove back to the hotel. “I gotta be more than hockey eventually,” he said. “I might as well practice now, you know?” he said.

“I’m sure you’re interesting enough, without hockey.”

“Uh, not really?” Kent said. “I’m just hockey and cats. And I’m weirdly good at math?”

“Really,” Bitty said.

“Yeah,” Kent said softly. He pulled onto the Strip, glad it wasn’t as busy as usual. He pulled into the hotel entrance a few minutes later. “Well, here you go,” Kent said. “Try not to stay up too late. You have a lot of things left to do.”

“Will I see you tomorrow?” he asked.

“Do you want to see me tomorrow?” Kent asked.

“Yes,” Bitty said. “I want you here at… what time do you wake up?”

“Just tell me the time, Eric, then I’ll be here.”

“How does 9:30 sound?”

Kent pulled out his phone, probably to set an alarm. “I’ll be here at 9:30,” he said. “I’ll see you then.”

Kent showed up the next morning at 9:30, just like he said he would. Bitty was curious about Kent’s schedule since he spent his entire day with Bitty and not have to do any Aces things the same way Jack had to do Falcs things.

He did notice that Kent was on his phone a lot while they were together, probably sending texts to his teammates. Maybe they were taking care of things while Kent was with Bitty.

The next few days were full of food, shopping, and, shows. 

And Bitty dragged Kent along for everything.

It was interesting to see him interact with fans every time someone would notice him. It was especially nice to see him interact with the younger fans. He’d sent a few texts and videos to Jack.

 

 

 **Eric:**  
I just saw Kent make a pack of kids stop crying.

 **This Boy:**  
Why are there a pack of kids in a casino?

 **Eric:**  
Not in a casino, Jack.

 **Eric:**  
We had to stop to sign 20 autographs.

 **This Boy:  
** He could’ve caught up with you after.

 **Eric:  
** I’m not leaving him and giving him what he wants, Jack.

 **Eric:  
** Now, leave a comment on the picture I sent in the group chat.

 

It was the fifth night of his trip when Bitty had kept his belt on while sitting in the parking structure of his hotel. “What are you doing tonight?”

“Like… after you get out of my car?”

“Yes. If I get out of your car.”

“If?”

“Kent.”

“I was just gonna head home.”

“I see,” Bitty said. He pulled his phone out and looked at the time. “Okay,” he said. “I’d like to meet your cats.”

“My cats?”

“Yes,” Bitty said. “Unless you don't’ want me to meet them.”

“That means going to my house.”

“Yes.”

“My house,” Kent repeated.

“I heard you, Kent,” Bitty said. He reached over and put his hand on Kent’s forearm and gave him a gentle squeeze. “If you don’t want me to see where you live, just tell me and I’ll get out of the car and see you tomorrow.”

“You want to meet my cats?” Kent asked. “Like… you really want to meet my cats?”

“Kent and Kat?”

“If I get a third one I’m naming it Kit.”

“Of course you are.” Bitty pulled his hand away when he realized his touch lingered for just a second too long. “So, am I going to meet them?”

Kent looked at his watch. It was early enough that he could go home, stay for a bit, then drive Bitty back to the hotel. “Sure. But they’re just cats.”

“I’m sure they’re more than just cats,” Bitty replied.

Kent buckled his seat belt again then pulled out of the parking area of the hotel. “I… you’re right. They’re my little monsters.” He made a few turns before ending up on the freeway.

“You don’t actually live in Las Vegas, do you?” he said as they traveled further and further away from the Strip.

“Vegas is too busy,” Kent said. “Hendo is nicer. And safer. And closer to our practice rink.”

“So, do you live in a mansion like most hockey players?”

Kent shook his head. “Nah. Just a house. A regular house. In a regular neighborhood.”

“Really?”

“It… may be gated.”

“That’s probably for the best,” Bitty said. He watched as Kent moved in and out of traffic with ease. “So,” he started. “Why a house and not an apartment?”

“Because houses here are so cheap,” Kent said. He moved over to the right lane so that he could exit. “I also figured after the first cup that I was gonna be here for a while.” He slowed down as he pulled off the exit. 

“Ten years.”

“Just about,” Kent said. He stopped at a stoplight and tapped on the steering wheel. “And it’s better to house rookies in a… house.”

“You house rookies?” Bitty asked, surprised. He watched as they passed neighborhood after neighborhood.

“When I’m asked,” he said. Kent turned into a neighborhood and leaned out of his window to punch in a code to open the gate in front of them. He made his way through a few streets before pulling into a driveway at the end of one. He opened his garage and pulled in. Once the car was shut off, he got out and waited for Bitty it get out of his car. Then he stepped into his house, kicking off his shoes.

He smiled when he was greeted by his cats. “Hello, you bums,” Kent said. He bent down to pick up his smaller cat. “KJ. My little KJ. I’ve missed you so much,” he said.

Bitty took his shoes off too and followed after Kent. He watched as a Maine coon stared at him before tentatively making his way over. “Hey there, handsome,” Bitty said. “I’m guessing you’re Kat?”

“That’s Kat,” Kent said, putting Kent Parson Jr. back on the ground.

Bitty bent down to pet the cat before standing up to look around. It was just a house. A regular house. Two stories. Pictures. Big screen TV. Jerseys.

Not what Bitty expected.

He smiled when KJ walked over to him and sat, looking up at the new man in front of him. “You are adorable.”

“My little munchkin,” Kent said. He walked around the kitchen, checking if their food and water was good. He looked at Bitty standing in his living room. “Uh. This is my place.”

“A lot of space.”

“Yeah. That’s… true.” 

“And you live here by yourself?” Bitty asked.

“Um. Yeah? But there’s usually a teammate over.” Kent opened up his fridge and pulled out two bottles of water. He offered one to Bitty. “I’d give you the tour, but it’s just bedrooms and stuff. This is the most interesting part.”

“And the pool in the backyard,” he said, taking the bottle. 

“Right. That,” Kent said, blushing.

“Kent,” he said. “I’m not trying to make you feel bad for having a pool. Honestly, with how terrible the weather is here, I’m glad you have one.”

“I don’t use it as often as you might think,” Kent said. “Mostly when the team is here. But, if you want to use it now, you are more than welcome. The weather right now isn’t that bad.”

“I don’t have a swim suit,” Bitty said.

“You can borrow one of mine. Or you can skinny dip. No one can see you from the back yard.”

Bitty blushed. “I… that’s alright.”

Kent’s eyes widened. “Oh man. I’m sorry. That was probably super inappropriate, wasn’t it? I didn’t mean it like that. I just meant that if you wanted to use it, there’s no judgement from me.”

“It’s fine, Kent,” Bitty said. “I’m not in the mood to swim. Maybe tomorrow?”

“You want to come back here tomorrow?”

“I just want to spend time with you, Kent. Whether here, or the hotel, or wherever we go.”

It was Kent’s turn to blush. “Yeah, okay,” he said softly. 

“You’re blushing,” Bitty said.

“Shut up, man,” Kent said. He rubbed his cheeks like it would erase the blush. “Just… yeah.”

“What does that mean?” Bitty said, raising his eyebrow. “Kent. Do you still doubt that I came here to see you?”

Kent took a sip of his water. “It’s not you, Eric,” he said. “It’s just the way I’m wired.”

“To think that no one really wants to be around you?”

Kent tensed for a second, then relaxed just as quickly. “Fifty-fifty shot, you know? You either hate me or you tolerate me.”

“Those aren’t exactly opposites.”

“I guess not,” Kent said. He set the bottle down and went to look in the fridge again. “Okay,” he said. “My fridge is full of food you definitely don’t want to eat. You want to order delivery?”

Bitty walked into the kitchen and looked into Kent’s fridge. “Goodness,” he said. “This is more organized than Jack’s fridge. And twice as sad,” he said, looking at the stacks of tupperware.

“So much mean in such a small package,” Kent said. He went to his drawer and pulled out some take out menus. “Choose one and order whatever you want. Just not pizza. Please, no pizza.”

Bitty picked up a Chinese and Thai menu. “Here,” he said, handing it to Kent. “Order anything.”

Kent nodded and punched in the number. He stood off to the side as he secretly placed his order. Then he put all the menus back into the drawer. “Thirty five minutes.”

“Okay, so what are we gonna do to kill time?”

“I started marathoning Brooklyn Nine-Nine.”

“I’ve seen a few episodes,” Bitty said.

“We can start it from the beginning. I don’t mind,” he said. He walked over to the couch and saw KJ and Kat on it. “Scooch,” he said. He picked up KJ and sat down on one corner before putting KJ in his lap. He looked up and saw Bitty staring at Kat who was sitting in the opposite corner. “You might have to fight him for that spot,” Kent said.

“Fight him?”

Kent’s eyes widened as Kat stood up and moved over just enough so that Bitty could sit down. “Or not? Huh. Let’s not tell Swoops that happened.”

“Does that not usually happen?” Bitty asked, taking a seat.

“Not so quickly,” Kent said. “It took Swoops three years for Kat to warm up to him.” He turned on the TV and put on the first episode of the TV show.

After two episodes, the doorbell rang. Kent handed KJ to Bitty then went to pay for the food. He walked back to the couch with bags and put them down on his coffee table. He then went to the kitchen to grab some paper plates and plastic utensils. He sat down and started opening everything. He served himself some food before standing. “You want something to drink, Eric?” he asked.

“I’ll have whatever you’re having.”

Kent nodded and went to the fridge. He walked back with two beers and two waters. “Options,” he said.

“Are you trying to get me drunk, Mr. Parson?” Bitty teased.

“No, no. Not at all. But it’s just something besides water. I’d drink, but I still have to drive you back.”

“Right,” Bitty said. He’d have to head back to the hotel after this. “Why don’t we hold off on the drinking for a little bit?” He knelt in front of the coffee table and served himself. He sat down next to Kent to eat. “So, is this a typical night for the Las Vegas Aces captain?” he asked before taking a bite of his food.

Kent shrugged. “Not necessarily typical. I wish it was.”

“You wish?”

“This city is so busy sometimes,” Kent said. “It’s nice when I get to slow down.”

“Doesn’t happen often?”

Kent shook his head. “Always something to do. Always someone asking me to do things. Which I don’t mind. But, it doesn’t leave much time for anything else.”

“Like getting engaged?” Bitty teased.

Kent let out an exaggerated groan. “Really?” He shook his head. “I don’t even have time to date, much less get engaged. Tabloids were so ready for me to settle down.”

Bitty looked over and saw Kent with a sort of sad smile on his face. “Why?”

Kent shrugged. “I think they think that a guy like me, with all my money, being at the top of the league, I can’t be single.”

“But you’re always linked to other celebrities.”

“Wrong place, wrong time,” he said. He finished eating his food and set the plate down. “But, it’s fine. Maybe one day I’ll actually be able to start dating.”

“Sometime soon?”

“If I can find some sucker who will fall for my charms and marry me before they realize what a disaster I am.”

Bitty frowned. It sounded like Kent really thought that about himself. “You aren’t a disaster.”

“I really, really am, though. As you can see by the multiple tabloids that I am in every year.”

“That’s the tabloids’ fault, not yours.”

“Sort of my fault,” Kent said. “I have to be doing something for them to type that stuff about me.”

“You mean, get engaged,” Bitty said. “Apparently that’s why you guys lost to the Schooners. The team was distracted.”

“The team didn’t give a shit,” Kent said with a laugh. “I mean, besides Zora?”

“Wedding planner?”

“You’re not gonna let that go, huh?”

“It’ll last a year,” Bitty said.

“It’s… yeah,” Kent said, his voice trailing off.

“What?” Bitty said. It looked like there was something Kent wanted to say, but he wasn’t going to. 

“I mean,” he said softy. “A stupid misunderstanding. But it was kinda a catalyst.”

“For you and Jack to start talking again,” Bitty finished. 

“Yeah,” he said softly. “I thought you were going to hate me because of it.”

Bitty blushed deeply. He didn’t realize that his dislike for Kent was so obvious sometimes. He set his plate down and looked over. “I… I wanted to hate you,” said. “There are moments that I still really want to hate you.”

Kent nodded. “It’s really, really not that hard,” he said. “There’s at least a hundred reasons for you to choose from.”

“And then you go and say things like that,” Bitty countered.

“Things like what?” Kent asked.

“You,” he started. He thought back on the things he heard during the Epikegster that Kent crashed. “You said some really terrible things to Jack.” 

Kent nodded. “Yeah, I did,” he said. “Some really terrible shit.”

“But,” Bitty said. As much as all he wanted to do was focus on the events of the Epikegster, he knew that he couldn’t ignore the conversations after. Especially the one where Jack said that they needed to apologize to each other. “I’m smart enough to know that Jack probably said some terrible things to you too.”

“Nah,” Kent said, shook his head. “He’s always been really nice to me. Canadian, you know?”

“Kent,” Bitty said with a sigh.

“Yeah?” Kent asked.

“Why are you trying so hard to protect him from being called out on his bullshit,” he said.

“Because he said those things when he was young and hurt. And he needed to put himself first so he could get better.”

“And when you said those things?” Bitty pressed 

“I was five away from thirty and wanted to hurt Jack.”

“You did a good job.”

“I know. It’s how I deal with things,” Kent said. He reached over and pulled KJ into his lap. “Probably a good idea for you to not let your guard down around me. I can be pretty mean if I need to be.” 

“I’ll defend Jack if I need to,” Bitty replied. 

Kent nodded and petted his cat. “I know,” he said with a sigh. “Even if he doesn’t need it. I promise. I won’t hurt him again. But if you want to keep calling me out on my bullshit you’re more than welcome to. Because sometimes I don’t really handle things well.”

“Well, I don’t know how you’re supposed to handle some of the things that you went through when you were younger.”

“Better than I did,” Kent said with a sigh. “But, I don’t know. It was a lot.”

“What was?”

“Jack,” he said softly. “There was… I was so desperate when I came to him.” He looked at Bitty and sent him a soft smile. “I’m okay now, though,” he said.

“Yeah?”

“I like to pretend that I am.”

Bitty stared at Kent. He wanted to believe that Kent was okay, but there was no way that he could be. Not when there was still so much Kent had to work through. “You’re still in love with Jack,” he said softly.

Kent’s hand stilled on KJ. He looked over at Bitty for a moment before looking away. “I… what?”

“Don’t lie to me, Kent,” he said softly. “Please.”

“I… I was,” Kent said. “For I long time, I was.”

Bitty noticed the word choice. “But you aren’t now.”

Kent shook his head. “Nah. I mean, now that I don’t have a chance with him anymore, you know? I kinda burned that bridge a long ass time ago.”

“At the kegster.”

“Huh?” Kent asked. “Oh. No. A long time before that,” he said. “That night just… gave me enough time to safely get back to the other side.”

“A long time?”

“Yeah,” Kent said. “I just… never wanted to admit it. But, we had an expiration date.”

Bitty looked over at Kent. “You did?” he said softly. He knew this. Jack told him this years ago.

“Yeah. We would’ve gone to separate teams. Time difference and all that.”

“That’s it?” That didn’t seem like too much to work through for Bitty. Especially since teams traveled. It wouldn’t be too hard to make the relationship work. It wasn’t for him and Jack.

“Yeah,” Kent said. Then he paused. No lying. “Well. No.”

“What else is there?” Bitty asked. He bit his lip when he realized that he was asking way too much of him. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t feel comfortable.” 

“It’s cool, Eric,” Kent said with a gentle smile. “I just. I realized how one sided it all was, you know? I had all these feelings and Jack didn’t.”

Bitty didn't believe that for one second. He knew how Jack didn’t always recognize his feelings. And if he did, he didn’t really now what to do with them. 

It was a little trickier now that Jack was working through everything. Bitty knew Jack would eventually realize that he did have some feelings for Kent during their time in the Q. 

“Kent,” he said.

“It was the environment,” he said softly. “All this pressure on all of us. Well, so much more on Jack than me. But there wasn’t time for feelings on his end. With everything he was going through.” He picked up KJ and put him on the cushion next to him. “But Jack just proved how strong he is. He’s in the league. He’s kicking ass. He has you.”

“He could’ve been in the league years ago,” Bitty said. 

“Hey,” Kent said, reaching over to nudge Bitty’s arm. “It’s fate. He’s in a better place mentally to be able to take on the pressure of the league.” 

That wording stuck with Bitty a bit. “Were you?”

“Were I what?”

“In a good place mentally?”

Kent let out a short laugh. “Oh no. I’m a mess,” he said.

Bitty raised his eyebrow at Kent. He was sure Kent didn’t realize what he was saying sometimes. “Kent.”

Kent furrowed his brow and thought for a second. His eyes went wide as he realized what he said. “Was a mess. I was a mess.”

“And now?”

“Now,” Kent said, standing up and stretching. “You have to get back to the Strip because you have more exciting things to do than hang out with a guy and his cats.”

Bitty smiled at the obvious deflection. “Smooth.”

“Thank you,” he said. “Okay. I’m gonna refill these monsters’ water, then we can head out.”

Bitty stood up and packed up the leftovers and put them in the fridge. He then waited for Kent so they could head into the garage. Bitty got into the car and buckled in. 

Kent sent out a few texts before he pulled out of the garage. He pulled onto the street and took his time heading back to the hotel. “You aren’t missing anything tonight, right? Show wise?”

“No, no,” he said. “I could’ve gone to see another Cirque show, but I have to save some things for me and Jack to see the next time we come here.”

Kent smiled. “City always leaves you wanting more.”

Bitty nodded. He watched the road and saw that they were going to get on the freeway soon. “Hey, Kent?”

“What’s up?” he said as he slowed down at the stoplight.

“Can we stop by a grocery store?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Kent said. “Sure thing. Gotta stock up on water and snacks, huh?”

“What?” Bitty said. Because that was not what he was thinking. “Yeah. Of course.”

Kent drove over the overpass to a small plaza and parked. He got out of the car and walked next to Bitty as they stepped into Sprouts. He watched Bitty grab a cart. He wasn’t going to question just how many snacks Bitty was going to get. He watched Bitty head toward the back. Kent made his way toward the snacks aisle.

Ten minutes later, he saw Bitty walking around the fruits. He made his way over and looked into his cart. What he saw in it was surprising. “Hey, Eric,” he said softly. “I know you’re staying at a pretty awesome suite and all, but why do you have a shit ton of butter in your cart? And other things? Are you baking?”

“I bake,” Bitty said.

“Right. Of course. To each his own.” He reached back and felt his wallet. “Come on. Let’s get you back to the hotel,” he said.

“No,” Bitty said as he pushed the cart through the fruits. He put a few more in his cart before heading over to the nuts and grains. 

“No?”

“We’re going back to your place. I’m gonna bake you some pies.”

“You’re gonna what now?”

“I know you heard me, Kent.”

“I did. Follow up question, why are you going to bake me some pies?”

“Because you don’t have any,” Kent said. 

“Okay. That is true. But I don’t need pies?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Bitty said. “Everyone needs pies.”

“I don’t know if that’s true, but sure?”

“Do you have baking supplies?”

“Uh. What kind of supplies would you consider baking supplies?”

“You’re hopeless,” Bitty said. 

“We know this?”

“Kent,” Bitty said. He’d was going to do his damnedest to get Kent to stop being so self-deprecating.

“Next door they have like this… a Bed Bath and Beyond?” he said softly. “It might still be open. If not, we can go somewhere.”

“Okay, let’s go.”

“You go ahead,” Kent said. “I’ll pay for this stuff and meet you there.”

“If I’m baking, I should—”

“I’ll take it out of your winnings,” Kent said. “Besides. You’re baking for me. I might as well pay for it.” He pulled his wallet out. “Go, before it closes.” Kent walked the cart into the check out line and paid for everything. He carried the bags into the store next door and found Bitty staring at pie pans and mixing bowls and whisks. “I do have some supplies.”

“No pie pans?”

“No.”

“I’m going to put things into the cart. And if you already have it, you can return it.”

“Sure, why not,” Kent said.

Half an hour later, they were heading back to Kent’s house. He helped Bitty unpack everything once they got inside. He was about to do something to help when his phone rang. He let out a huff before he answered it. “Hi, Swoops,” he said. He went to sit down on one of the stools at his kitchen island. “No, I can’t go out tonight. I know, I know I haven’t been out with you guys in weeks.”

“Everything okay?” Bitty whispered.

Kent nodded in reply. “No. I’m not gonna apologize.” He paused to listen to Swoops say things to him. “Well, because the last time I went out, the world thought I was engaged.” He rolled his eyes. “Yes, it was funny.” He shook his head. “No. Because only one of us got an earful from Zora.”

Bitty smiled. It had been weeks since the engagement incident. He wondered just exactly what Kent had to do for damage control.

“Yeah,” Kent said. “I’ll come visit. We gotta go to the hospital next week, right? And we gotta meet the rookies.” He shook his head. “Once Eric heads back east, I’ll come out with you guys.” He smiled fondly. “Yeah. Be safe. Make good choices. Call me if you need someone to pick your drunk asses up, okay?”

“We love you!” Swoops yelled loud enough that Bitty could hear it clearly.

“I love you too, you losers,” Kent said. He then hung up. He set his phone down on the island. 

“You don’t have to stay in because of me,” Bitty said as he washed his hands.

“It’s not because of you,” he said. “Going out can be exhausting. And I caused a scandal last time. I gotta give the media time to let their guard down before I messed up again.”

“It happens often?”

“Scandals in Vegas don’t last long. There’s always another one on the horizon.”

“But you’ve been cooped up since then. That was months ago.”

“Personal choice,” Kent said. “I like the quiet.”

“Really?”

“I’m used to it. And I got my cats.”

Bitty looked into the living room  and saw those same cats sitting sleeping on the armrests of the couch. “I can see that,” he said. 

Kent stood up from his seat and went to wash his hands. “Can I help?” he asked.

“You really want to?”

“I’m not the best in the kitchen when it comes to baking. Just tell me what to do and I'll do it,” he said. “Even if it’s just cleaning up.” He dried his hands with a paper towel. 

“Well, when the time calls, you can preheat the oven.”

“I can do that.”

“So, what did your teammates want?” he asked. He wanted to know what Kent was turning down so he could stay in and bake pies instead.

“They wanted to go to Hakkasan tonight,” he said. “But I wasn’t into it.”

“You wanted to stay in with your cats?”

“And you.”

Bitty smiled softly. “And me.”

“So, is Jack really why you didn’t want to go to a show tonight?”

Bitty shrugged. “I wasn’t into it.”

“Funny,” Kent said.

“I try.”

“So, can I do anything while you measure out flour and stuff? Or is this part of your process and you need me to stay out of the way?”

“You can slice things for me,” Bitty said, pointing at the apples and peaches.

“I can do that.”

Bitty got to work putting together and blind baking pie crusts and making all the fillings. He put two pies in the oven and got back to work putting together a few more. “Okay,” he said. “I have two more pies to bake and I don’t need you anymore.”

“Okay. Ouch,” Kent said. “You’re gonna do all of that tonight?”

“Are you kicking me out?” he asked. 

“No, of course not,” Kent said. “But you have a hotel room that’s calling your name.”

“I’m going to finish these pies first,” Bitty said.

“And I’ll just… sit here on the couch with my monsters.”

By the time Bitty finished making the pies, it was already two in the morning. Kent had fallen asleep on the couch with the TV on and Kat on his chest and KJ near his head. 

Bitty woke Kent up and the two of them relocated upstairs into his room. They got into a bit of an argument because Kent kept trying to give Bitty his bed because it was the most comfortable one in the house while Bitty kept arguing that it was his bed so he would take a guest bed since there were so many. 

After about ten minutes, they just agreed to sleep in Kent’s bed together. Kent did get a punch in the arm when Bitty saw just how big the bed was.

Kent went to grab some extra pillows to make a pillow wall between them. “It’s for your benefit,” he said.

“You get handsy when you sleep?”

“Swoops said I’m a cuddle monster. His words. He also thinks that I’m probably touch starved which is why I cling in my sleep.” He shrugged. “Sounds fake, but whatever.” 

Kent handed Bitty some clothes to sleep in. By the time he hand changed Kent had stripped down to his boxers and was already passed out.

Bitty smiled at how easily Kent had fallen back asleep. And he looked so peaceful. Bitty took a picture of him and send it to Jack. He climbed into the bed and turned so that he could sleep facing Kent. “Night, Kent,” he said before finally falling asleep.

Bitty woke up to someone shaking his leg and whispering his name over and over again. He groaned as he opened his eyes and saw Kent standing over him. “Yes?”

“Hey, Eric. I’m sorry, but it totally slipped my mind. But I have a Little Aces thing today it’s the one thing I can’t get out of. I’ll drop you off at the hotel on my way to the arena, but I gotta head out soon if I’m gonna make it there in time.”

“What?” Kent was talking too much and saying too much too early for Bitty to be able to comprehend all of it.

“You can stay here, but you’ll be stuck here pretty much all day. But you can use the pool and the gym and all that.”

“Little Aces?” Bitty said, latching on to the one thing Kent said.

“Yeah,” Kent said as he threw on a shirt and a hat. He put on some pants and went through his drawers to find some socks to wear. “I hang out with the kids. I pick them up if they fall down. Physically. And emotionally too, if they need. It’s… adorable, actually.”

Bitty sat up and rubbed his eyes as he tried to make sense of everything happening. Kent was going to hang out with little kids for a few hours. It sounded like fun. “Can I join you?”

Kent looked surprised at the question. “Your itinerary.”

“It’s fine,” Bitty said.

“Are you sure?” Kent asked. “You only have two days left here. You want to spend one of them watching little kids play hockey?”

“Kent,” Bitty said. “I don’t have a problem with hockey. And I love kids. It might be fun. Besides, it’ll be nice to see the arena.”

Kent sighed as if he knew he wasn’t going to win the argument. “Okay,” he said. “But, when we break for lunch, I’m taking you back to the hotel so you don’t spend your entire day at the rink.”

“But, what if—”

“Eric,” he said. “I’ll drop you off wherever you want to go, but I don’t want you to spend the entire day at the rink. I can take you to one of the outlets and you can shop then I can come and get you.”

“And what if I want to spend my day at the rink with you?” Bitty said with a pout.

“You could. If that’s what you really, really, wanted,” Kent said. “But, I’m still taking you to the outlets. Because the only thing you’ve bought was your weight in butter and some pie pans.”

“Fine,” Bitty said. “But you’re staying at the hotel with me after J.Lo,” he said. 

“Okay.”

“And you aren’t sleeping on the couch,” Bitty said.

Kent rolled his eyes. “Fine,” he said. 

Bitty and Kent were ready, out the door, and on the way to the RC Cola Arena in fifteen minutes. When they arrived, Bitty was surprised at how many cars there were in the parking lot. “Is this usually a big thing?”

Kent shrugged. “It… seems the same as usual?” he said. He looked over at Bitty as he shut off the car and put on the sun shield. “It’s usually bigger when we win the cup, if anything.”

“As it should be,” Bitty said. 

“Okay. Here’s the plan. You can stay until lunch. Then I’m dropping you off at the outlets so you can shop.”

“But I want—”

“No, no. You can’t stay here the entire time. I mean, you can. I’m not telling you what to do. But it’s your vacation. And you need to shop.”

“I don’t need to.”

“Eric, please,” he said. “I’d feel really bad if you stayed there all day.”

“Okay,” Bitty said.

“Okay,” Kent said. He walked out of the car and waited for Bitty. He led the way to the Arena. He told Bitty where to sit in the stands so he could watch while Kent went to the locker room to put on some skates. 

Bitty watched as Kent skated out and greeted all of the young players on the ice. Since they were a little early, he watched as Kent took the time to talk to a few of the youngest ones.

Then came teaching the little kids how to run drills. That was after making sure all of their equipment was on properly. He pulled out his phone and took pictures as Kent skated along with each and every player.

He loved watching whenever Kent would laugh as one of the younger ones was just a bit off balance. He was always there to catch them right before they hit the ice.

That boy was so encouraging.

After watching him get tackled by kids for the fourth time, he figured it was almost time for lunch. Kent walked over to Bitty and sat next to him.

“You look out of breath,” Bitty said.

Kent fixed his hat and laughed. “Yeah,” he said. “I don’t think the kiddies realize how heavy they are with the pads and everything.” He smiled as he watched the kids to go their parents to get ready to eat. “Shall we head out?”

Bitty nodded. “Yes. You said something about outlets.”

“Yes,” Kent said, standing up. “Let’s go. I got an hour to get you there and get back.”

Bitty smiled and followed Kent to the car. “You’ll come and get me when you’re done?”

“Yeah. I’ll head home and shower and pack some jammies. Then I’ll come to you so I can buy socks or something,” he said with a smile.

Bitty laughed and got into Kent’s car. Thirty minutes later, they were at the mall. Bitty waved to Kent and headed in, ready to spend some money.

At four o’clock, he got a text from Kent, asking where he was. He met Kent at the food court and bought some froyo before they continued to walk around the mall. Kent held onto a few of the bags that Bitty had acquired while he was away.

They were there for another two hours before they headed back to Bitty’s hotel.

Once they were there, Kent helped Bitty put his things away. He sat on the couch and let out a yawn.

“Are you okay?” Bitty asked.

Kent looked up at Bitty and smiled at him. “I’m a little tired,” he said. “Chasing little kiddies can be a little tiring.”

“Well, the show is at 9, right?” Bitty grabbed his itinerary and looked it over. “It’s at nine. You can take a nap if you need to.”

“Yeah?” Kent said, already turning to lie down on the couch.

“I’ll wake you up.”

“Thanks, Eric,” he said. 

“Wait,” Bitty said. “Get on the bed, Kent. You can’t sleep on that thing.”

“I know that doesn’t sound like a challenge, but I’m tempted to prove you wrong,” Kent said.

“Kent Parson. Bed. Now.”

“Such a bossy bitty person,” Kent said as he stood up and walked over to the couch. He plopped into it and fell asleep a few minutes later.

Bitty smiled and looked over at Kent as he slept peacefully a few feet away from him.

He woke him up an hour and a half later so that they could get something to eat. Then they went to see J.Lo. It was one of the greatest shows Bitty had ever been to. And by the end of the night all Bitty wanted to do was sleep. He was ready to ride this high until the end of his trip. 

Then came the time for Bitty to finally be dropped off to the airport so he could fly back east. He dreaded it a lot more than he realized he would.

He didn’t want to leave Vegas.

Or. Actually. He didn't want to leave Kent.

While Bitty was expecting his impression of Kent to change during the trip, he didn't think it would change so drastically and in such a short period of time. The thought of leaving Kent alone in that huge house was too much to think about.

They got to the airport and Kent parked in the parking structure instead of just driving up to the terminal. That meant that Kent was going to see him off. Bitty had to wonder if this was affecting Kent as much as it was affecting him.

He didn’t say anything as Kent got out of the car first and grabbed his bags from the back of his car. He waited for Bitty and handed over his carry on while he put himself in charge of the suitcase.

They were quiet as they headed into the terminal and to the check in counter. Kent stayed off to the side as Bitty did what he needed to do.

Then, they headed toward security. Luckily the airport wasn’t busy so Bitty could linger a little longer. He looked at Kent, standing in front of him, with his hands in his pockets just waiting. “Thank you,” Bitty started.

“It wasn’t a big thing,” Kent said. “I hope you had a good time.”

"I did,’ Bitty said. “I’ll remember all of this for a very, long time.”

Kent nodded and smile. “Good,” he said softly. “Maybe you can come when Jack does. The Backstreet Boys will be back in town by then.”

“Or I could just come to see you.”

Kent blushed. “Or that,” he said softly. “Thanks for hanging out with me, Eric. I know you didn’t need to.”

"I wanted to.”

“I know. Now, I know.” He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Bitty, giving him a hug. “Tell Jack I said what’s up, yeah?” he said softly. He then pulled away.

Or, at least, he tried to.

Bitty held Kent, not wanting to let go just yet. “I will,” he said softly. The hug went on for a few more seconds before he had to pull away. "I should head through security, huh?”

Kent nodded. “As much as I'd love to keep you. Here. Keep you here. You have a boyfriend and a life to get back to.”

Bitty sighed. “You’re right.” He looked around and saw that there wasn’t anyone around them. He went up to his tip toes and kissed Kent on his lips, holding his own there for a moment or two. He then pulled back. “I’ll see you soon, okay?” He grabbed his bags then headed into security, waving at Kent as he did.

Kent stood there in a daze. Apparently Bitty didn’t realize he did what he had just done. 

Or maybe he did?

But there was a kiss involved.

Bitty kissed him. And Bitty was dating Jack.

This was not good. Not good at all. He had no idea how he was going to deal with this.

He watched as Bitty disappeared through security before he headed back to his car. Once he was in it, he figured out what he was going to do about the kiss.

He had to get ahead of it.

He looked at the clock and did the math to figure out how late it was back in Rhode Island. He knew that Jack would be awake long enough for Bitty to tell him that he was boarding the plane.

This meant that he could tell Jack what happened as soon as he got home. Or, he’d wait so that Bitty would know what was going on. 

He couldn’t sleep on it.

He stayed awake through what was supposed to be Bitty’s flight. He then waited for Bitty to send the group text that he had landed and was waiting to get off the plane.

Kent dialed Jack and waited for him to answer. “Jack, I’m so sorry,” he whispered as soon as Jack answered.

“What happened?” Jack asked.

“I… I’m so sorry. I fucked this up. Real bad.”

“Kenny,” Jack said, worry definitely evident in his voice now. “What happened?”

Now or never. Kent knew that it was a lie, but he was not going to ruin a good thing for Jack. It just sucked that all the progress they had made in repairing their relationship would be destroyed. “I… I kissed your boyfriend.”

“What?” Jack asked.

“Yeah,” he said. “I don’t know. He was here. And he was saying goodbye. And he’s just… been really, really nice while he was here. So. I just… I'm sorry.”

“Kenny.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it,” Kent said. Another lie.

“You didn’t?”

“No. Of course not! He’s your boyfriend. Why would I kiss your boyfriend?”

“Kent.”

Kent couldn’t do this. He felt his eyes tearing up. Just when he promised that he’d never hurt Jack again he went and did something stupid like this. “I’m gonna go. I'm so sorry.” He blinked and tears fell from his eyes. “Fuck. I'm so sorry.” He hung up before he or Jack could say anything else. 

Bitty walked out of the airport and straight to Jack’s car to put his things in the back. He leaned over and kissed Jack on his cheek once he got into the passenger’s seat. “Hi, sweetie,” Bitty said.

“Hi. How was Vegas?”

“Hot. I think I'm actually partially cooked now,”he said.

“Did you have fun?” Jack asked as he started the car and pulled onto the road to drive back to Providence.

“I did, actually.”

"I’m glad.” After a few minutes of driving, he figured it was a good time to let Bitty know about the conversation he just had. “So. Kent called,” he said as he got onto the main road to take them back home.

“Oh?” Bitty said. “What did he want? He probably called because he realized that I didn’t return his hat to him.” He had to smile. He could now use it as an excuse to have Kent come over. He pulled out his phone, ready to send an invitation.

“No, it wasn’t that,” he said. “He actually called to tell me that he kissed you.”

Bitty dropped his phone into his lap. He turned to glare at Jack. “He what?

“He kissed you.” Jack didn’t sound mad about it at all. 

But Bitty was. “That liar,” he said loudly.

“He didn’t kiss you?”

“He wishes that he kissed me,” Bitty growled. 

“Bitty, what’s going on?” Jack asked.

"I… I kissed him,” he said. “And we can discuss all of that later, but, right now, I have to yell at a captain of the Las Vegas Aces.”

He picked up his phone and went straight to Kent’s contact. He wasn’t going to have this conversation in the groupchat.

 

 **Eric:**  
GET YOUR BUTT OVER HERE. NOW.

 **Kent:**  
Holy shit, capslock.

 **Eric:**  
Kent Parson.

 **Kent:**  
Any reason why?

 **Eric:**  
Because you lied to Jack!

 **Kent:**  
No, I didn’t. I kissed you.

 **Eric:**  
Only because I initiated it.

 **Kent:**  
And I didn’t pull away.

 **Kent:**  
It’s fine, Eric. I can take the blame for this. I’m not gonna let this ruin you and Jack. 

 **Eric:**  
You said that me and Jack are rock solid. It won’t.

 **Kent:**  
Good.

 **Eric:**  
You better be making a flight here right this second.

 **Kent:**  
For what?

 **Eric:**  
Now, Kent. OR Jack and I are flying to Vegas. Because we are not doing this over the phone.

 **Kent:**  
Yeah. Okay. I’ll see you next month.

 **Eric:**  
No. You have two days.

 **Kent:**  
Such bossy in such a small package.

 **Eric:**  
KENT VIRGINIA PARSON

 **Kent:**  
That isn't my middle name.

 **Eric:**  
TWO DAYS. OR ME AND JACK ARE FLYING OUT.

 **Kent:**  
Yeah. Okay.

 **Eric:**  
Send me your itinerary when it’s done.

 **Kent:**  
So bossy.

 

Bitty received a flight confirmation in his email half an hour later.


	4. Chapter 4

Kent stood at the door to Jack’s apartment and sighed. He had an edible arrangements in his hands, figuring that would make someone feel better. He reached up and knocked on the door then waited for someone to answer.

This was his third time in so many months at Jack’s apartment, and it never got any easier. If anything, every time he’d been to Jack’s apartment, the stress in him would be worse than the time before.

If he was ever invited over after today, his stress would probably give him a heart attack.

His eyes went wide when he saw Bitty standing on the other side with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Kent.”

Kent held out the fruit bouquet. “It’s an apology for kissing you,” he said. He sucked in a breath when Jack stepped into view. He had no idea how to read his expression. He didn't look too mad, which was a good sign.

“Come inside, Kent,” Bitty said. His tone was neutral, even if the look on his face was angry. He stepped off to the side and let Kent walk in after he took the fruit bouquet from him. “Have a seat on the couch while I put this in the fridge."

Kent nodded and took his hat off before heading into the living room to sit down. He held onto his hat this time so that he didn’t forget it. He looked up and watched Jack turn off the TV and stand in front of it.

Oh no. He was going to get lectured.

Bitty then joined Jack and stood next to him. 

Kent let out a sigh of relief for them. At least they were still a team. That’s all that mattered.

“Kent.”

"I know that I’ve already apologized about a dozen times, but I’ll keep apologizing until you forgive me,” he said. 

“You kissed Bitty,” Jack said. 

"I know. I know. It’s my fault. I do stupid things, you know this. Someone’s nice to me, I kiss them. It’s a big mess I am always making.”

“Why did you kiss him?” Jack asked. His tone was much gentler than Kent thought he deserved. “I’m giving you a chance to come clean.”

“I…” Kent looked at Bitty and saw that he wasn’t going to say a thing. He was grateful for that. “He… he was there. And he was nice to me his entire trip. And he made me pies.”

“So, it was a thank you.”

“I… yeah,” Kent said.

“He’s my boyfriend, Kenny,” Jack said. 

“I know, Jack. I know. And I swear it was just a slip. Eric doesn’t even like me. It’s mostly pity on his end, you know?”

“That’s a lie,” Bitty said, finally saying something.

“Bits,” Jack said. “You kissed my boyfriend, Kent.”

Kent dragged his hands down his face. He could feel his eyes watering. "I know. I know,” he said softly. “I wasn’t thinking. I never meant to. I promise.”

“Jack, that’s enough,” Bitty said softly.

Jack sighed and nodded. “Bitty told me the truth, Kenny. He told me how you slept in the same bed. He told me that he was the one that initiated th kiss.”

“No, he wasn’t. I—”

“Always try to protect me. Even when I don’t ask for it.”

“It didn’t mean anything, Jack.”

“Please don’t speak for me, Kent.” Bitty leaned over and wrapped his arm around Jack’s waist. “I kissed Kent because he was nothing but nice to me the entire trip. He was my chauffeur. He kept trying to pay for everything even though he didn’t need to. He let me bake pies in his kitchen.”

“Did he now?” Jack said.

Kent watched the two of them interact. He wasn’t sure if he was supposed to say anything to support what Bitty was saying. He stayed quiet instead. But he did smile at how easy it was for the two of them.

“I got to see him with the Little Aces. And the big Aces. They’re so different from the Falcs.”

“Did you get a chance to learn any secrets?"

“No, sweetie.” He tiptoed to kiss Jack on his cheek. “I can see why you were worried about your feelings for Kent.”

“What?”

“Once you get to know him, he’s really easy to love. Or at least like, huh?” Jack said with a smile. He wrapped his arm around Bitty and held him close. He looked over at Kent. “Kenny, why did you lie?”

Kent sighed, fiddling with the brim of his hat. “Um. I Felt bad. I didn’t want you and Eric to get into a fight because of something so stupid.”

“Kissing you is stupid?” Bitty asked.

“When you’re boyfriend is Jack, yes.”

“Why did you lie to protect Bitty?”

Kent dropped his gaze and took in a deep breath. He slowly let it out, trying to relax as he did. “I felt guilty.”

“You felt guilty for that?” Bitty asked.

“Because… because I think I started crushing on you,” Kent said so softly he hoped the others didn’t pick up on it. “It was dumb. You’re with Jack. I don’t know why. I keep… out of my reach, you know?”

Bitty sighed and moved to sit next to Kent. He reached over and put his hand on Kent’s thigh, squeezing it reassuringly. “Feelings are complicated, aren’t they?”

“Sort of?” Kent asked. “But I’ll figure it out. You two just gotta give me time.”

Bitty looked up at Jack and nodded. Jack moved to sit next to Kent so that he was bracketed by the two of them. “You like how he just bypassed the earlier conversation?” he asked Jack.

“He does that,” Jack said. 

“What earlier conversation?”

“The one about me being confused about my feelings for you."

“What’s so confusing about it? Just going back and forth between if were actually friends or not, right?”

“Kenny,” Jack said. “You are, at the very least, a friend of mine.”

Kent noticed the word choice. “At the very least? What the hell does that mean?” 

“Sweetie,” Bitty said, leaning over and moving his hand up to Kent’s forearm. “He’s trying to tell you that he may have resurfacing feelings.”

Kent turned his head from looking at Bitty to glaring at Jack. “There has to be feelings to begin with to have them resurfacing,” he countered.

“Kent,” Jack said with a sigh. “Don’t tell me how I felt in the Q.”

“I’m not,” Kent said. “I’m just saying that the kissing was nice, wasn’t it? And the other stuff. That’s it.”

“You were my best friend.”

“I know that. And you were mine. But that was it,” Kent said. “At least on your end.”

Jack let out a sigh. “Kenny.”

“Zimms,” Kent said softly. “Don’t. Please, don't.”

“I did love you, Kent,” Jack said. “As much as I wanted to deny it. And as much as it didn’t make sense back then, I loved you.”

“No,” Kent said. “You didn’t.”

“Kenny.”

Kent let out a groan and dragged hands down his face. This was getting to be too much. He didn’t have much energy to keep arguing with these two. “Okay, fine,” he said. “You may or may not have loved me back then. But you don’t now.”

Jack let out a laugh, brushing his fingers through his hair. “Yeah. Well.”

“Well, what?” Kent stood up and walked around the coffee table so that he could look at the two of them. He was going to do the lecturing now. “You have Eric. You two are great together.”

“He’s allowed to love more than one person, Kent.”

“And you think that person is me?”

“It could be.”

“I think the Vegas heat may have cooked your brain, Eric.” Kent had to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. This had to be a prank. Or a trick. 

“And made me kiss you?”

“Heat of the moment,” he said softly. 

“You did not just say that,” Bitty said. There was a soft smile on his lips. It was a terrible joke, but needed for the situation.

Kent blushed. “Sorry.” He was grateful for the smile. It made him relax just a bit. It wasn’t a lot, but it was enough for him to not want to bolt out of the room that instant.

“No,” Bitty said, walking up to Kent. “I kissed you because I made a mistake.”

“See,” Kent said, turning his attention from Bitty to Jack who was still on the couch. “Kissing me was a mistake.” He knew that it was, but it was still a little hard to hear.

It was good, though. Jack and Bitty were okay now. They probably always were, but he knew where he stood between them. This was probably the last time he’d be in the same room with the three of them.

Bitty looked over to Jack and let out a huff. “He really does have selective hearing sometimes.” He then turned back to Kent. He reached up and cupped his cheek. “I misjudged you, Kent. You’ve been nothing but kind and polite and accommodating.”

“Okay,” he said softly. “But I’m not always like that.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Bitty said. “I like the you I know. I could end up liking you a lot.”

Kent reached up and gently pulled Bitty’s hand away from his cheek. Bitty just admitted that he liked him. “This is making my head hurt,” he said softly.

“Well. We already know that you’ve been in love with Jack for a decade.”

“Please don’t say it like that,” Kent said, taking a step back so that there was some distance between him and Bitty. “It makes my life seem even sadder than it already is.”

“Your life isn’t sad, Kent.”

“Debatable.”

“It’s not,” Bitty said.

“Kinda is.”

“Back to the original topic,” Jack said, keeping all three of them focused. “You just admitted that you like Bitty.”

“It’s a stupid crush,” Kent said. “You know me.”

“Well, we like you too,” Bitty said. 

“What?”

“I may not have as strong of feelings for you as I do for Jack, but it’s because I don’t know you well enough. But I could.”

“Could what?” Kent asked slowly. 

“Have strong feelings for you. Depending on if you let me get to know you.”

Kent was about to say something, but Jack spoke up first. “And I remember loving you.”

Kent’s breath caught in his throat. That was the last thing in the world he expected Jack to say to him. “Jack.”

“I’m not going to deny it, Kenny,” Jack said. His tone was always so damn gentle. “Especially when it’s not true.”

Kent swallowed hard. This was definitely too much. He wanted to run away, but he knew how bad that would look. He wanted to be mature about this. He wanted to talk about it. He owed them that much. “Okay, okay. Fine. But, now what? Everything is aired out. Now we can move on?”

“Forward,” Bitty and Jack said at the same time.

Kent would have smiled at their wavelength again, but he stopped himself. The word change was more important. “What?”

“Move forward,” Jack corrected. “We like you.”

“That seems complicated.”

“It is,” Bitty said. “But you’re in our lives now, Kent. Friend or more. I think it’ll be better if we let this play out.”

Friend or more. This wasn’t real. Was it? “What does that mean?”

“Either these feelings develop, or they fade away. Either way, we should give it a chance, right?”

“Uh,” Kent said, staring at the two of them. He didn’t know what to do. Yes, he had feelings for both of them, and apparently both of the people in front of him had feelings for him. This was a lot to take in. The more they talked about it, the more he could be convinced that this was a good idea.

“Puck’s in your zone, Kenny,” Jack said with a smile. He made his way to his feet to stand with Bitty and Kent. “You can tell us that you want to just be friends and that’s fine. You can say that you want us to take it slow, that’s okay to. We’ll take it as slow as you need us to.” He rested his hand on Kent’s shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Just tell us how you’re feeling.”

Kent had to shiver at the touch and the squeeze. “Honestly.” He looked at Bitty and Jack. Two people that liked him and wanted to see if anything would develop between the three of them. This was not how he expected this trip to go at all. “Exhausted.”

“Okay,” Bitty said with a smile. “We can work with that.

“But I still like you guys,” Kent added quickly, as if his exhaustion somehow negated his feelings. 

“Okay,” Jack said, mirroring Bitty’s smile.

Kent fiddled with the brim of his hat a little more. “But I also have like a billion reservations about all of this.” He was burned too often and for too long for him to not be cautious about this. But then he’d look at Jack and Bitty and see how happy they were.

He wanted that.

With them.

“Understandable,” Jack said. “But Ken—”

“I don’t want to get in the way of you two,” he said. Kent could see how much Jack and Bitty loved each other. The second it looked like something was about to go wrong, Kent would step away.

“You won’t,” Bitty replied, furrowing his brow.

“It’s complicated. This whole thing is complicated. I’m all the way in Vegas. You’re here. There’s a lot of baggage between me and Jack.”

“Then we’ll work through it,” Jack said. “One step at a time.”

“Are you sure?” Kent asked.

“Kenny,” Jack said. “You flew all the way out here. That was either because you were hopeful, or because you were thinking we were going to tell you off to your face.”

“I really don’t know what I was expecting.” He did. He was expecting to be cut out of Jack, and now Bitty’s, life once and for all. 

“And that’s okay,” Jack said. “In your skates, I’m not sure what I would’ve thought. Or how to handle it.”

“You probably wouldn’t have gone straight to worst case scenario,” Kent said.

“You forget about the anxiety.”

Kent rolled his eyes, but he smiled. It was so damn nice to hear Jack talk about his anxiety in a way that told Kent that Jack was finally okay. “Yeah,” he said softly.

Jack reached up and took the hat from Kent’s hands. Any more fiddling with it, and the hat would need a new brim. “But we promise to be patient. With you and with each other.”

“I’ll do the same,” Kent said. He really wanted to make this work. He would work as hard as he could to make sure that he didn’t ruin it.

Bitty took the hat from Jack. He was going to put it with the other hat that had yet to be returned. “Even if you don’t want us to be the three of us, you’re still our friend.”

“At the very least?” Kent said, repeating Jack’s words from before. That was what he wanted. For so long, he just wanted to be friends with Jack. And now there was a chance that he’d he more. Again. But this time with Bitty too. 

“Bitty already gave our group chat a nickname.”

“Yeah? That sounds official.”

“PB and J,” Bitty said proudly.

“Like… what you have before every game?” Kent blushed when Jack nodded. It was amazing how some things never changed. “That’s… kinda adorable.”

“So, what do you say?” Jack asked.

“I’m not sure yet,” Kent replied. It was all happening too quickly for him to make sense of all of it.

“That’s okay,” Jack said. “Like we said, we’re working on patience. If you want the three of us to be better friends first, we can do that. Then go from there.”

“That seems like it’ll take a long time,” Kent said. “You guys willing to wait that long?”

“We’ll see,” Bitty said.

“Just… be patient with me, please?” Kent looked at the two of them. He knew he’d make a lot of mistakes. He hoped that they would be okay with helping him and forgiving him when they happened.

He really wanted to ask them to not give up on him, but he stopped himself. 

Patience. The three of them were working on patience.

“Of course, Kenny,” Jack said, resting his hand on the small of Kent’s back.

Kent shivered at the touch. He took a deep breath and shakily let it out. He was slowly relaxing.

“You said you were tired?” Bitty asked.

“A little.” A lot, actually.

It was a long two days. From waiting to find out if they were still friends, to having to take a flight from Las Vegas, to learning that Jack and Bitty liked him. Bitty figured Kent would be exhausted. “Lie down on the couch,” he said. “Me and Jack are gonna watch something and you can just sleep if you need to.”

“You sure?”

Bitty raised an eyebrow at him. “I suggested it. Of course I’m sure.”

Kent gave him a tired smile. “Thanks,” he said. “Wake me up if I start drooling?”

“Of course, peanut.”

Kent let out a laugh. He did not hate it as much as he thought he would. He walked back to the couch and immediately flopped onto it. He watched Bitty and Jack approach, watching Bitty stay near his head while Jack went to his feet. He lifted both so the two of them could sit. He shivered as Bitty started brushing his fingers through his hair. It relaxed him enough that he could actually fall asleep like this.

He heard Bitty and Jack talking softly as he drifted.

“Well, that was a lot,” Bitty said.

“Agreed.”

"He flew all the way out here," Bitty said. He kept running his fingers through Kent's hair, feeling him settle. "He keeps surprising me." 

“You kissed him,” Jack said softly. He smiled as he did.

“I did,” Bitty said. “It… just felt so natural after everything. I didn’t even realize what I had done until I was halfway to my gate.” He let out a sigh. “He was just so different from everything I thought about him. I’m surprised at how easily I got along with him. ”

“I’m not,” Jack said with a smirk.

“Don’t be smug,” Bitty said. “You may have been right, but we almost made him cry.”

“I feel bad for deceiving him when he got here,” Jack said. He rested his hand on Kent’s calf and ran his hand up and down it.

“I feel badly too, but I wanted him to come clean,” Bitty said. “I had no idea he’d be so adamant about taking the blame for me kissing him.”

“He does that for people he really cares about. He’s always been unreasonably protective.”

“I’m starting to get that.”

“So, you really think this is going to work?” Jack asked, watching Kent shift to get a little more comfortable.

“I’m hoping so,” Bitty said. “I still love you, but I don’t think I can stop liking him.”

“It’s okay, Bitty. I love you too,” Jack said. He leaned over and kissed him on his lips. He pulled back and smiled. “I hope this’ll work out too.”

Kent relaxed with each brush of Bitty’s fingers through his hair. 

With that, Kent’s mind was put at ease. For now. He fell asleep between the two of them with a smile on his face knowing that this wouldn’t be the last time.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr at zimmboniandbitty.


End file.
